Meet Chief Inspector Dalia Miller, 67, a Border Police volunteer and deputy commander of the Ta’anakh base, who says she intends to stay in an operational role for as long as the police will have her. “Age is not a barrier for me,” she says. “If I encounter a terrorist, he will leave the encounter neutralized.”
Miller, a senior volunteer officer in the Border Police’s reserve cadre, recently received a certificate of recognition for her years of service and contribution to the security of residents in the Gilboa region.
Miller, a mother of three and grandmother of two from the village of Sharona in the Lower Galilee, spent 37 years working as a physical education teacher, social coordinator, school administrator, and homeroom teacher at the Amaal school in Afula and at the Emunah boarding school. She taught thousands of students, and later even taught the children of her former pupils.
“Twenty-four years ago, I moved to the community of Gan Ner in the Gilboa, and soon after, I began volunteering at the Border Police operations base,” she says. “I was on the community council, and security matters were very important to me. I founded a bicycle patrol, started volunteering as a Border Police fighter in the Ta’anakh region, and later joined the neighborhood watch of the Afula police.”
“We ran daily patrols in Gan Ner with vehicles and sirens. The work was intensive, every day, and weekends were even busier,” she says. “I oversaw 80 volunteers across the community. At the same time, I joined the local rapid response team and served as deputy security chief for six years. I also served as a reservist with the Menashe Brigade in the West Bank Division. Nearly twenty-four hours a day, I was involved in security alongside my work at the school.”
'I am not afraid of encountering terrorists'
Miller retired four years ago following structural changes at her school and decided to chart a new path.
“I was born in Moshav HaYogev. I am a second-generation farmer, and when I retired, I decided to return to my roots,” she says. “I rented a house in Sharona and bought farmland in Yavne’el. I grow vegetables, fruit trees, and free-range chickens for my own use. At the same time, I continue volunteering with the Border Police.”
Miller attended an officer training course as a volunteer at age 55 and has continued rising through the ranks, eventually reaching chief inspector. “I work many shifts,” she says. “I am the deputy commander of the Ta’anakh base, and we oversee 130 volunteers who arrive daily from surrounding communities. In the event of an infiltration in the Ta’anakh area, our volunteers are responsible for defending the communities. At any given moment, we have two patrol vehicles operating in the field.”
How did the events of October 7 affect her? “I am not afraid of encountering terrorists,” Miller says. “If I run into one, he will come out neutralized. I have caught many infiltrators, illegal weapons, and even suspects wanted for Shin Bet questioning. Age is not a barrier for me.”
“When my new base commander, Master Sergeant Liran Haboosha, arrived, I asked him to tell me the moment he believes I am no longer fit for operational duty. I promised that if that day comes, I will retire with dignity from the field and move to an administrative role. That day has not come.”