Johan Franklin Miller

Johan “Johnny” Franklin Miller passed away peacefully at home in Belle Plaine on Thursday, April 30, 2026, at the age of 82.

A Memorial Mass will be held Saturday, May 9, 2026, at 10:30 a.m. at Our Lady of the Prairie Catholic Church with Fr. Michael Kaluza, officiating. Visitation will be at Kolden Funeral Home in Belle Plaine on Friday, May 8, from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m., and will continue at the church Saturday morning from 9:30 a.m. until the service. Johnny will be laid to rest at Oakwood Cemetery immediately following Mass. Afterward, family and friends are invited to gather at the church for lunch.

Johnny was born in St. Peter on August 16, 1943. After spending his early years in Kasota, he moved to Belle Plaine as a young boy, the town he would call home for the rest of his life. A 1961 graduate of Belle Plaine High School, Johnny worked on the railroad for two years and briefly for Cargill before finishing a long career as a machinist at the Silgan Canning Plant in Savage.

On September 19, 1964, he married Patricia Brazil at St. Brendan’s in Green Isle.

Together, they had five children.

Johnny played football, basketball, and baseball throughout high school, but he was happiest around a ballfield. He spent years dedicated to the upkeep of Tiger Park, a labor of love that mirrored his lifelong passion for the sport. From his playing days to managing the Belle Plaine Town Team, the Babe Ruth team, and others in between, he was a true "Tiger" at heart.

When not at the field, he was often at Annie’s Cafe with the coffee club or cheering on Minnesota sports. It was fitting that the Twins, Wild, and Timberwolves all won on the day he passed. Johnny also enjoyed hunting and dirt track racing, spending countless hours building engines for racers at Arlington Raceway. Above all, he cherished time spent with friends, & his family, especially his grandkids.

Johnny is survived by his wife, Patsy; children, Johan “Jeff” (Ann), Paul (Sherry), Cara Feltmann, and Jenifer (Bruce) Moseman; 10 grandchildren, Ashley, Alex, Andrew, Victoria, Josh, Jared, Lauren, Chloe, Carly, and Lily; 7 great-grandchildren, Jadyn, Julissa, Miles, Jack, Tatum, Cooper, and Nora; sister, Lynette (Erv) Heitkamp, & brother-in-law, Maynard Schultz. He is preceded in death by his parents; Johan (1989) & Dorothy (2011), eldest daughter, Christine Carey (2012); son-in-law, Chad Feltmann (2025); sisters, Carol Buesgens (2007) and Joan Schultz (2026) and many other loved ones.