A fresh face for the 20th Assembly District

It’s such an honor that you all have had the confidence to elect me.”

Missy Miller, Assemblywoman

Atlantic Beach resident Missy Miller was ceremoniously sworn in by Joseph Mondello, chairman of the Nassau County Republican Committee as she took the oath of office to serve as the assemblywoman for the 20th Assembly District at Lawrence Middle School at the Broadway Campus on Tuesday. The official swearing-in is in Albany on Jan. 3.

“It’s such an honor that you all have had the confidence to elect me,” Miller said, “I promise that I will make you proud,” adding that she has never backed down from any challenges and will bring that determination with her to Albany. 

Miller, 52, defeated Democrat and Long Beach City Councilman Anthony Eramo on Nov. 8. She is the first Republican to win the seat in more than 50 years.

Atlantic Beach Mayor George Pappas has known Miller for more than 25 years. He said he is proud that she was elected to represent the district: “She’s going to work hard for everybody especially our children.” Pappas knows the grief Miller and her husband, Brandon, suffered when they lost a daughter, Melanie, 7, in 1997, and the ongoing challenge of caring for their son, Oliver, 16, who suffered a stroke at birth, is blind and endures severe daily seizures.

Miller has spent the better part of the past three years advocating for the legalization of medicinal marijuana, which has been used to successfully treat people who suffer from several maladies, including seizures like her son’s. Oliver attends Lawrence High School.

“She is someone we could all look up to for her inner fortitude, positive spirit and her ability to overcome life’s challenges,” Gary Schall, Lawrence Superintendent, previously told the Herald.  

Miller and Brandon grew up together, and have been married for 27 years. Their daughter Katy, 21, just earned her associate’s degree from the Fashion Institute of Technology in Manhattan. 

A volunteer in a pediatric residency-training program through Northwell Health (formerly the North Shore/LIJ Health System) for more than 20 years, Miller helped create music and adaptive phys. ed. programs for students enrolled in Lawrence High’s Life Skills program, which Oliver is a part of. She was named a New York State Woman of Distinction last year.

John Novello, leader of the Cedarhurst-Meadowmere Park Republican Club, said he organized the swearing in ceremony to allow the community and local dignitaries to come together since most will not be able to attend when she gets sworn in at Albany in early January. “She’s going to be great,” he said, of Miller’s political future.

Jeffrey Bessen and Anthony Rifilato contributed to this story.