Benjamin Alfred Mills was born in Billerica, Massachusetts and passed away in Santa Rosa, California. Between those bookends he railed at the world, snuggled his three children, chose two great wives, and left things far better than he found them. He was 69 years old.

Growing up in Billerica, he determined early that politicians couldn’t be trusted — a narrative that followed him throughout his life. He also learned that you work both to make the world better and to keep the refrigerator filled. His love of the Russian language began in high school, and he was reading a modern Russian Satirist on the day he died.

His big brother Jon introduced him to Uechi Karate, a path that led him — and later his oldest children — to black belts and to approaching others through patience and humility.

Ben’s formal training was at Dartmouth, Tulane (MD/MPH), and then the University of California. As an individual clinician, Ben’s career was anything but ordinary. He volunteered at a suicide help center — twice. He was on call for injuries large and small in Big Horn County, Wyoming. While there he fought not just for his patients, but for public health. He lead the first successful tobacco regulation fight in that state’s history.

Then, combining his Family Medicine training with his love of Russian, he opened a clinic in Siberia. And then, just for the heck of it, another one in Almaty, Kazakhstan. He practiced womb-to-tomb care, the kind you see on TV — only in far more exotic and challenging circumstances.

He believed deeply that a doctor’s job was to make sure patients understood what was happening. He used his drawing talent — and the readily available paper covering an exam table — to draw explanations for his patients.

After a brief return to Big Horn County, Ben relocated to Santa Rosa. But the U.S. still wasn’t quite calling to him. He finally pursued the public health career he had long wanted, taking senior advisory and director roles for USAID in Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and the CDC in Africa. His work had a focus on limiting the impact of HIV on the communities he was in.

He then returned to the United States so his youngest child could begin school here, first living and practicing family medicine in Massachusetts and eventually returning to Santa Rosa. As one of his last public health accomplishments he did painstaking research on anemia patterns amongst low-income children which radically changed subsequent approaches to pediatric practice and support. He completed his working years at Santa Rosa Community Health Center.

For all his contributions and friendships, Ben privately battled depression on and off since he was 16. While the world’s powerful might have been untrustworthy, he found individuals to be a constant source of joy — especially those with whom he shared his international adventures. Most of all, he found joy in his children. Recently, he delighted in sharing stories with his grandson Jamie and was greatly looking forward to his younger son’s high school graduation. Ben loved music, photography, and conquering a Sunday crossword puzzle. Even on the darker days, his sharp, smart sense of humor endured. The twinkle in his eye when something struck him as funny will be missed by all who knew him.

We will gather to share memories of Ben on March 21, 2026.

***In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations in his name to the HIV program at Santa Rosa Community Health Center.***

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