Decorated Special Forces vet/ GLBT activist Marcus J. Miller Jr. has died

[underpants]

Marcus J. Miller Jr., owner of the popular club Barcode in downtown Richmond, didn't need prompting to help others when he saw them in need -- he did it spontaneously.

"He hated to see somebody in trouble," said longtime friend Michael Gooding.

Mr. Miller's generosity and giving nature covered a wide spectrum of needs. He helped people pay their bills; put them through college or bought their textbooks; and frequently donated money and time to many gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender organizations.

A native of Georgia, Mr. Miller was a decorated veteran of the Army Special Forces. He moved to Richmond in the late 1980s as supervisor of all Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurants in Virginia and North Carolina.

He later worked as a manager of a local Ruby Tuesday restaurant and for a financial company. At the same time, he served as an unpaid general manager of Fieldens, a private social club in Richmond that was in dire financial straits.

Mr. Miller helped pay off the accumulated debt and taxes to keep Fieldens open for the community, Gooding said.

But his lifelong dream was to own his own restaurant and bar. In 2001, Mr. Miller purchased Casablanca, a gay club on Grace Street, and after renovations, he reopened it as Barcode in November of that year.

Mr. Miller also was a longtime gay community activist in Richmond and contributed to the growth of the city's gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community.

He was a founding board member of Richmond Triangle Players, a small theater company founded in 1992 that focused on works relevant to the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender communities. He served two years on the board of Equality Virginia and was active in planning committees for Richmond's Pride Festivals.

He portrayed "a positive image of our community and moved along the process for equality and full acceptance in society," Squires said.

http://www.inrich.com/cva/ric/news.apx.-content-articles-RTD-2008-09-19-0134.html