He built a business, championed education, led Boise’s bowl game. ‘A true public servant’

A longtime figure in the Idaho education and business communities died last month, ending decades of influence and philanthropy in the Treasure Valley.

Milford Terrell, 80, of Eagle, died “peacefully” and “surrounded by family” on April 23, according to his obituary. His death marked the end of decades of volunteer work to support young Idahoans.

Gov. Brad Little said Terrell “will be missed.”

“Milford was a true public servant and tireless advocate for education and Idaho students,” Little posted on social media.

Terrell moved to Idaho when he was 2 weeks old and spent the rest of his life in the Gem State. His difficult childhood included time at the Children’s Home Orphanage in Boise, his obituary said. He later went on to become a board member and director of the Children’s Home Society of Idaho, a nonprofit offering mental health care to young Idahoans out of the very orphanage building in which Terrell once lived.

“Having had a very rough childhood, he wanted better for every child,” his obituary stated.

Terrell served as an Army medic during the Vietnam War. While at a Japanese evacuation hospital, he met nurse and future wife, Grace, according to his obituary. They married in Japan in 1969 before returning to Idaho, where they spent 55 years of marriage until his death.

Terrell “entered the plumbing world with a new vigor” after returning home, launching his own plumbing business out of his garage with a $1,000 loan, his obituary said.

DeBest Plumbing in Boise would become one of the most well-known plumbing companies in the Treasure Valley. The business, now owned by his daughter Darcy Neidigh, celebrated its 50th year in 2023.

Business leaders across the Treasure Valley mourned his passing.

“Milford treated me like a peer when I was far from it and took time on multiple occasions to both mentor me but also to listen to me,” Travis Hawkes, managing partner of Meridian-based investment firm Capitol Eleven, wrote on social media. “He freely gave of his time, his most precious resource.”

Terrell was best known in the community for his involvement in Idaho education.

Terrell served on the Idaho State Board of Education from 2003 to 2014, including two years as president. He also chaired several committees during his time on the board, including the Planning, Policy, and Governmental Affairs Committee and the Medical Education Study Committee, according to Boise State.

“He was a selfless public servant who always had Idaho students’ best interests in mind,” Debbie Critchfield, Idaho superintendent of public instruction, said in an Idaho Department of Education news release. “(Terrell’s) commitment to education and to public service was inspiring, and he will be missed.”

Terrell was a prominent supporter of Boise State University, having attended vocational programs there for his plumbing apprenticeship, according to the university. He funded scholarships and was a vocal advocate for growing the university’s doctoral programs, the university said.

“Milford has been there for Boise State every step of the way,” then-Boise State President Bob Kustra said of Terrell’s State Board retirement in 2014, according to The Spokesman-Review.

Other leadership roles at Boise State included serving as president of the Bronco Athletic Association and as a member of the Bronco Athletic Association Coaches Club and the Boise State University Foundation Board.

Terrell helped grow the Humanitarian Bowl, now known as the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl, for 10 years and served as its chairman until he resigned in 2007 to focus on his family.

“He took the idea of a cold-weather bowl in a small market and made it a fixture in the college bowl industry,” Kevin McDonald, the bowl’s then-executive director, told the Statesman in 2007. “Milford will be missed. He was somebody who worked hard in front of the cameras and behind the scenes. He dedicated his time, money, everything to the bowl.”

A celebration of Terrell’s life will be held at 1 p.m. Friday at the Cloverdale Seventh-day Adventist Church, located at 1115 N. Cloverdale Road.