LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Hearts are heavy after loved ones said goodbye during a celebration of life for 69-year-old John Mills.

He was the worker at the PGA Championship who died last week after he was hit and killed by a shuttle bus outside of the Valhalla Golf Club.

What You Need To Know

  •  John Mills was the 69-year-old killed by a shuttle bus at Valhalla Golf Club

  •  Mills worked on maintenence projects at the Bluegrass Center for Autism's three campuses

  • Described as friendly and nice, his co-workers say he will be missed

  • The Bluegrass Center plans to honor Mills with a plaque above his last project with them

Heather Ewing is a behavior analyst at the Bluegrass Center for Austism. She and others miss seeing Mills working around the halls and in different rooms at the center.

She said it feels strange and different that he’s not here anymore.

“John was a super-nice guy. He was always super-friendly whenever you would pass him in the hallway or if you were letting him into the building or something like that. He was always super-friendly, happy to be here,” Ewing said.

Mills worked at the Bluegrass Center for Autism for almost two months. He worked on a project-by-project basis. Mills performed maintenance projects across their three campuses. He did things like change doorknobs, replace light bulbs and patch up holes.

“Small things to bigger companies, but to our small company, those are huge things,” Ewing explained.

Sterling Franklin, Director of Development and Marketing at the center, says the Mills family named the Bluegrass Center for Autism as the recipient of any donations, instead of flowers. At least 40-50 donations have come in so far—adding up to around $2,000.

“We’re really overwhelmed by the amount of love that we feel, love for John that is being spread onto us now. It’s made a really big impact. We’ve even had people reach out, offering to pick up where John left off and volunteer their maintenance services, which has been really a blessing for us,” said Franklin.

A water bottle filling station was the last project Mills finished while at work. It was just installed last week. Now, it’s being used by everyone, especially clients.

“So, it’s got a really big impact on our organization. So, it’s really sweet that’s the last thing he did for us,” Franklin said.

Franklin said the Bluegrass Center plans to honor Mills and his last project by adding a plaque above the water fountain.

Related Stories