Jul/Aug 2020 In Remembrance

In Remembrance is an occasional column featuring short obituaries of CAS members who have recently passed away. These obituaries and sometimes longer versions are posted on the CAS website at bit.ly/CASMbrObits.

The Ambassador

Thomas J. Chisholm (FCAS 2000)
1956-2020

Thomas Joseph Chisholm of East Greenwich, Rhode Island, died unexpectedly at home on May 3, 2020.

A senior high school trip to Spain in 1975 hooked Chisholm on travel. The friendships he forged on that trip lasted his lifetime. He traveled all over Europe, the U.K., the Virgin Islands — French, British and U.S. — and nearly every state in the U.S. Throughout his life, Chisholm embraced others wherever he went, often inviting new people into his circle of family and friends.

Chisholm graduated with honors from Hamilton College in Clinton, New York, with a BA in mathematics in 1979. After briefly considering a medical degree, he decided to continue with mathematics, joining Travelers Insurance Company in Hartford as an actuarial analyst. From there he worked for American Universal Insurance Company, AIPSO, Providence Washington Insurance Co. and One Beacon, moving up with each post. In 2010, he accepted a position with NLC Insurance Companies in Connecticut as an AVP & actuary, and he remained there until his untimely passing.

Chisholm was a generous supporter of Hearts for Animals Inc., a nonprofit animal sanctuary and healing center founded by his sister in 2009. His love of Hawaii led him to serve on the board of advisors for the Grand Wailea, a five-star resort on Maui, since its opening in 1991.

Chisholm is survived by his parents, Joseph and Carol Chisholm of East Greenwich, and his sister JoAnn Chisholm-Dueno of Hauula, Hawaii. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Hearts for Animals Inc. (www.heartsforanimals.org).

The Educator-Turned-Regulator

Mary D. Miller (FCAS 1992)
1946-2020

Recipient of the Academy’s Jarvis Farley Service Award and the CAS Matthew Rodermund Memorial Service Award, Mary D. Miller died on June 7.

Born Mary Cecilia Downey in Napoleon, Ohio, to Robert and Patricia (Lawler) Downey, she attended St. Augustine High School, where she discovered her love of mathematics. She graduated from The Ohio State University with a math degree and a French minor in 1968. She taught math at Roy C. Start High School in Toledo for six years prior to the birth of her first child. She was a stay-at-home mom for 10 years and, when her last child entered school, she went back to earn her master’s in mathematics from the University of Toledo, where she was reintroduced to the actuarial profession.

Her first actuarial job was with Lumberman’s in Mansfield, Ohio. Later she moved to the State of Ohio’s Department of Insurance, where she rose to chief actuary and chief financial examiner. Very active in both the CAS and the American Academy of Actuaries, Miller was a vice president for both organizations and a director on their boards. In 2014 she became Academy president.

On June 26, 1999, she married Michael C. Miller, who survives her. Other survivors include her five children, nine grandchildren, seven siblings and other relatives and friends. Memorial gifts may be made to the Ovarian Cancer Research and Education in Gynecology Fund (#312187) at The James Cancer Hospital (https://giveto.osu.edu/makeagift).