Benton Harbor woman to combat drunk driving after losing husband

BENTON HARBOR, Mich. --- The widow of a man killed by a drunk driver back in 2012 hosted a memorial Saturday remembering her late husband and shining a light on the dangers of drunk driving.

Tina Miller lost her husband Carl “Buck” Miller five years ago. He was riding his motorcycle near downtown Benton Harbor when he was fatally hit by a drunk driver.

On Saturday, she and about 100 of his friends and family took to the streets on their motorcycles to visit the exact spot where he died and where his body was put to rest in a nearby cemetery.

“A drunk driver took my friend and being without him I can’t even describe it,” said Mo Robinson, friend of Miller.

Robinson said he and Miller were like brothers, bonding over these two wheels and an endless amount of asphalt. He said they rode from Atlanta to Cincinnati, both of them just enjoying the ride.

Tina Miller, Miller’s widow, said visiting the spot where Miller died was overwhelming and was trying to hold back tears all day.

“Emotion just came all over me about the feeling of what it was when he did pass,” said Miller.

Miller said she is trying to bring awareness to the dangers of drunk driving and said what happened to her husband can happen to anyone.

“It just made me think about that we can lose our life at any time of the day anytime of the hour,” said Miller.

Miller said she is looking to teach children about drunk driving and it’s consequences. She said if you give them this information now, they will not forget it.  

In 2017, 178 people have died due to alcohol-related accidents, according to Indiana’s Mothers Against Drunk Driving chapter.

“Even though he wasn’t drinking or smoking or anything like that somebody that hit him was so the thing is we need to get this out here about drinking and driving,” said Miller.

Friends of Buck Miller said they are really taking this whole experience seriously.

“It kind of took away everything away from me,” Robinson said. “If I can ask anybody to do whatever, if they can do a big favor for me don’t drink and drive, you take away good people.”