Fola Miller

Respected local interior designer, Fola Miller (Fola Lerner Interiors) slipped quietly away in the early morning of Aug. 8, 2017. A forty year resident of the Coachella Valley, Fola was highly respected for her work in the posh communities of the valley. Her keen sense of color, style and use of space, along with her wit and charm, set her apart as a top tier designer. She was elected, by her peers, as a Fellow of the International Interior Design Association. Born, Fola Schaeffer, April 19, 1931, in Meriden, Connecticut, she was educated at Hamden Hall and the University of Connecticut. Fola and her first husband, Lt. Col. Robert Lerner, USAF (dec'd), settled in San Bernardino, Calif. in the 1960's where they raised their family. In 1975, she moved to Palm Springs, Calif. to join Vee Nicley Studios. In 1986, she established Fola Lerner Interiors. With her husband, Lee Miller, they owned and operated "Wallpaper Plus" in Palm Desert, Calif. during the 1990's. They were longtime residents of Bermuda Dunes Country Club. Fola is survived by her husband, Lee Miller; her son, Reid Lerner, AIA of Gilroy, Calif.; and her daughter, Rabbi Darah Lerner (Kelly Quagliotti) of Bangor, Maine. Services will be held at Forest Lawn Mortuary in Cathedral City on August 14, 2017 at 12:00 pm. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests a donation to the National Alzheimer's association of the USC Keck School of Medicine, Alzheimer's Research ProjectServices are under the direction of Forest Lawn Cathedral City.