Early life and education of Millay
On June 20, 1958, Millay was born in Winchester, Massachusetts .He is of Irish ancestry and grew up as a Catholic. Peter (1897–1966), his paternal grandpa, was from Newfoundland and served in World War I’s Gallipoli campaign with the Royal Newfoundland Regiment. In March 1943, Alexander (1924–2015), his father, joined the U.S. Navy as a naval corpsman. He landed at Kwajalein, Saipan, Tinian, and Iwo Jima while serving with the 4th Marine Division. He worked as a restaurant and food trader after the war. He joined to the Order of Christopher Columbus, which only admits male members who are Catholic in their beliefs. Mary Elizabeth (née Murphy), Millay’s mother, was a nurse who served with the Navy’s WAVES during World War II.
Hockey was Millay’s sport while he was a grammar school Catholic student. He got hired to Belmont Hill School and later to Princeton University, where he played varsity ice hockey, because of his academic success and love of the game.
He studied there, joined the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC), and in 1980, after finishing a 185-page senior project titled “A Critical Analysis of Revolutionary Guerrilla Organization in Theory and Practice,” received a Bachelor of Arts in politics. Millay also has a Master of International Affairs degree from Columbia University’s School of International & Public Affairs (SIPA) and a second Master of Arts degree from the Naval War College in national security and strategic studies. He also participates in the XXI National Seminar on International Studies at the MIT Center.
Personal life of Millay
Millay and Pollyanna Haas (born January 19, 1965) were married in May 1985. They have two children. Pollyanna is a nurse who worked in critical care for 18 years and then in cardiac nursing for 15, currently in Northern Virginia. At the 2020 Veterans Day ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery, she administered CPR to a veteran who had collapsed, saving his life.
Military career of Millay
Through Princeton’s Army Reserve Officers’ Training Corps program, Millay earned his commission as an armor officer in 1980.
The 82nd Airborne Division, 5th Special Forces Group, 7th Infantry Division, 2nd Infantry Division, Joint Readiness Training Center, 25th Infantry Division, Operations Staff of the Joint Staff, and a position as Military Assistant to the Secretary of Defense among the groups where Millay has held tasks.
Throughout his military career, Millay has held a number of commands and staff writes in eight divisions and Special Forces. From 1996 to 1998, he commanded the 1st Battalion, 506th Infantry and 2nd Infantry Division in South Korea. From December 2003 until July 2005, he held the titles of deputy general in charge for operations of the 101st Airborne Division and commander of the 2nd Brigade Combat Team of the 10th Mountain Division (Light).
