Jim Chiprean sold shoes by day and played music by night, winning the hearts of shoppers and friends alike while building a life and legacy in Butler.

In an era when local mom-and-pop shops dominated the business landscape, customers knew they could rely on the kindness and integrity of Jim Chiprean — who died on Tuesday, Dec. 9 — and his Main Street shoe store.

In 2025, Miller’s Shoes and his legacy both live on. The store stands tall under the leadership of Chiprean’s son, Jimmy.

Chiprean, 93, touched many lives through his own. In addition to being well known locally as a successful business owner, he was known as a community man, a family man and in the music scene.

“We sold shoes all day together, played music all night together,” Jimmy Chiprean said. “It was all about the family for him.”

After graduating from Butler High School in 1952 and John Carroll University, as well as service in the Army, Jim Chiprean worked at Miller’s for over 60 years alongside his wife, Madeline, and their sons Jimmy, Tony and John.

Miller’s Shoes, a Butler staple, has sat at its current location since 1893. Over the years, the store also had locations in Erie, Meadville, Altoona and Pittsburgh’s Oakland neighborhood.

Jim Chiprean was a member of the Shoe Retailers Association and was a recipient of the Golden Triangle “Shoe Retailer of the Year” award.

“It was a powerhouse in the ’80s and ’90s, selling thousands and thousands of shoes, before the chains took charge,” Jimmy Chiprean said. “It wasn’t just about a shoe store — it was about the community, being there in downtown Butler.”

Over the years, Jim Chiprean’s business has left an massive impact on community members looking for shoes.

Gail Paserba, a family friend, recalled interacting with Jim Chiprean for years. As a young mother, she bought her son a pair of shoes from a competitor store, and the toes quickly fell apart. So, she took the shoes to Miller’s.

After Chiprean asked what happened to the shoes, he got a box of new ones, put them on her son’s feet, and said, “Thank you. Have a nice day,” free of charge.

“The guy at the competitor said, ‘What do you want me to do?’ And to be honest, we counted our pennies, because we had to,” Paserba said. “(Chiprean) didn’t know me, but he saw I was a young mother, who was upset, and he handed me a new pair of shoes for my boy. That’s the man he was, his heart was kind.”

Another family friend, Cathy Martin, remembered visiting the store as a child.

“We would go into shoe store, and the family would talk with me,” she said. “They treated me as if I were most important person in the world.

“That’s the way this family operates.”

Jimmy said even in more recent years, his father made his granddaughters feel important.

“He never missed a swim meet, dance recital, cheer event, basketball game,” he said.

Jim Chiprean’s ties to the community extended beyond Miller’s Shoes. He served on all committees of the Butler Businessmen’s Bureau and was its president from 1967 to 1973. He was also a director of the Butler County Chamber of Commerce in the 1980s, and was on the board of the Butler Credit Bureau.

Chiprean also started downtown Butler’s annual Spirit of Christmas Parade.

“All the different organizations he was involved with … he was also just such a friendly guy, a pleasant man,” Butler Mayor Bob Dandoy said. “I don’t know a lot of people that had any negative interactions with him.”

With parents who were also musicians, Chiprean discovered a love of music in high school, leading the Moonlighters Orchestra with two of his brothers, Jack and Bob. In college, he received the Outstanding Bandsman Award while studying at John Carroll University.

The three brothers formed the Chiprean Brothers Orchestra and traveled around Cleveland, Ohio, playing shows. Later on, Chiprean played with the Gene Schaffner Orchestra and the Frank Sawhook band.

He traveled around Western Pennsylvania playing with the Anthony James Band — at times, three generations of Chipreans played with the band.

Chiprean would also serve as vice president of Local 188 of the American Federation of Musicians. Dandoy, who has been involved in the music scene over the years, knew Chiprean since he was a teenager playing in garage bands and attending meetings in the basement of Miller’s Shoes.

Dandoy said he enjoyed getting to see in-person Jim Chiprean’s love for music and his desire to promote local musicians.

“To have known someone like that, who did all that, with a successful business and his civic efforts to impact life for those in Butler, too — he always set a great example,” Dandoy said. “Butler is better because of his service and leadership, plus the music he brought into everybody’s lives.”

Paserba, when she later became friends with Chiprean, remembered feeling a part of the family.

“They took us in and made us part the family,” Paserba said. “What I remember most is when you said ‘I love you,’ he said ‘I love you more.’ He said it to everybody.”

Among those he loved was his wife, Madeline. Jimmy Chiprean said he couldn’t talk about his dad without mentioning the love of his father’s life.

Jim Chiprean was loved by the community, too. He’ll long be remembered and appreciated, people like Martin ensure.

“The thing with Jim Chiprean is he’s the kind of guy where you had a warm, face-to-face, loving relationship,” Martin said. “He treated you like you were important.

“That is what you don’t see these days as much — this hurry, hurry, hurry mentality, texting instead of talking. I think the personal relationship was something about it with him.”