Dewitt Obits

Illa Maxine Miller of Heyworth

Illa Maxine Miller, 88, rural Heyworth, more recently of Normal and Bloomington, died Saturday (July 20, 2013) at McLean County Nursing Home, Normal.

Her funeral will be at 10 a.m. Monday at Calvert & Metzler Memorial Home, Bloomington, with the Rev. Peggy Vogelsinger officiating. Burial will follow at Sugar Grove Cemetery, rural Wapella. Visitation will be from 3 to 5 p.m. Sunday at the memorial home.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Heyworth Fire and Ambulance Service, Heyworth; the youth camping program of Second Presbyterian Church, Bloomington; or District 90 Education Foundation, Pontiac.

Maxine was born March 3, 1925, at Little York, the daughter of Clarence Styles and Alice Marie Johnson Sims. She married Roland L. Miller on March 30, 1947, at Park Methodist Church, Bloomington. He died Jan. 20, 2002.

Survivors include their three sons, Claude E. (Martha) Miller, Bloomington; Darrell L. (Cathy) Miller, Heyworth; and Paul S. Miller, Pontiac; eight grandchildren, Michelle L. (Bill) Brown, Roswell, Ga.; Sherry K. (Marcus) Fredericks, Naperville; Kimberly A. (Nic) Campbell, Appleton, Wis.; Lana J. Miller, Normal; Nicholas E. (Cathy) Miller, Bloomington; Steven P. (Amy) Miller, Ocean Springs, Miss.; Erik L. (Chelsey) Miller, Clinton, Iowa; and Emily L. (Daniel) Coers, Hartsburg; and great-grandchildren, Jillian Brown; Luke and Ryan Fredericks; Illa and Roland Campbell; Corinne and Norah Miller; plus one due from Steven and Amy in August; a niece; three nephews.

Her parents; a sister Gladys M. (Glenn) Langhoff; and a brother, Forrest L. (Dorothy) Sims Sr., preceded her in death.

She was a graduate of St. Joseph Hospital School of Nursing, Bloomington, class of 1947. She worked a few years as an office nurse for Dr. T.S. Cumming in Heyworth. She and her husband farmed southeast of Heyworth for more than 50 years prior to his death in 2002.

She was a charter member and first president of the Heyworth Fire Maids, a charter member of the Heyworth Veterans of Foreign Wars Auxiliary and was a past president of the Heyworth PTA.

Our Mom moved from the farm to Blair House in Normal in 2003, until her struggle with Alzheimer’s/dementia in 2010 became too much for her to handle alone. She continued to live at Luther Oaks in Bloomington until very recently going to McLean County Nursing Home.

The Miller family would like to thank the staff of Luther Oaks, the staff of McLean County Nursing Home and Dr. Michael Cochran for their loving care and concern for our Mom and Grandma and for all the extra effort all of you put forth to allow her to live her final months and days with grace and dignity. May God bless all of you.