Georgia Bruton Miles
November 1, 1934 – February 22, 2023
Sacramento, California – Though dementia took her life on February 22, 2023, Georgia Byrd Bruton Miles always maintained her humor and joy when visited by family and friends. Georgia was born an American citizen in Mexico City on November 1, 1934 to Edmond Macaulay Bruton and Byrd Pugh Grant Bruton. Georgia never lost her love for Mexican culture – the delicious food, the warm climate, the scent of eucalyptus, the bright colors, the upbeat and soulful music. Georgia was the middle child of her ex-pat family but the last of her generation to die. Her younger brother John Macaulay and older brother Oliver Grant preceded her in death (May the Bruton siblings continue to share in their afterlife their love of good food and their love of hyperbolic and hilarious storytelling).
The Brutons moved to Louisville, KY when Georgia was 10, where she was a student at Collegiate School until she escaped the life of a Southern Bell to attend Sarah Lawrence College in New York. She graduated in 1957, the same year that she married Lee Robert Miles and soon fathered their children, Catherine Macaulay (1959) and Harold Grant (1961). The Miles family then moved from the East Coast to Los Angeles, where Georgia just loved being near the beach and surrounded by hippie culture. Sacramento later became home, where Georgia was one of the first female brokers to work with Lyon Real Estate and was one of the first baristas at the trendy (pre-Starbucks) cafe Weatherstone Coffee – an experience that inspired her to open her own coffee supply store, Georgia Coffee Company.
In her retirement, Georgia took annual trips to Mexico with her childhood friend, learned the art of watercolor painting, and spent endless afternoons lounging by the pool while listening to her wind chimes on the patio. She also spent many hours crafting her cuisine, becoming particularly well known for her shrimp lasagna and cheesecake.
Georgia Bruton Miles had a boundless ability to celebrate the joys and empathize with the sorrows of those she loved. Georgia will be missed, especially by her friends, her children, her son-in-law Dave Nielsen, her granddaughter Emily Ellyn Nielsen, as well as her sisters-in-law Frances and Sylvia Bruton and ex-sisters-in-law Brenda and Suzy Miles. The family suggests making donations in her memory to the Southern Poverty Law Center in lieu of flowers.
Published by The Sacramento Bee on April 22, 2023.
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