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Millie began her formal education attending the public schools. During her second grade year, her family moved from Huntington County to Columbia City where she began attending Ground Hog School, a one-room schoolhouse. Although quite a change for her, Millie adjusted accordingly and led a childhood typical of her generation. With the onset of the Great Depression, hard economic times caused much financial struggle for all, and Millie's family was no exception.

While many during the Great Depression left their schooling behind, Millie was able to complete her education and went on to graduate from Columbia City High School with the Class of 1937. Following high school, she began working at the Blue Bell Jean Factory in Columbia City. It was also during this time when her relationship with a handsome young man named Carl Fremont Downing started to blossom. Deeply in love, the two were married on June 26, 1938, in the small town of Goblesville in Huntington County. She remained working at the blue jean factory before she and Carl began a family of their own.

In August of 1940, Millie and Carl were overjoyed to welcome the birth of their son, Carl Wayne into their hearts. By 1943, they purchased their first home in Coesse, and soon added to their family with the birth of their daughter, Karen Sue in January of 1944. Millie was a loving and attentive mother, yet strict when she needed to be. Through the years, wonderful memories were enjoyed and shared with her family. She made a good home for Carl and the kids, and she was a great cook.

In 1952, Millie and her family moved to a farm on Hartman Road, where they temporarily lived in a two-room building while they worked on building their house. No stranger to hard work, Millie, Carl and the kids tended to their cows, pigs, sheep, and chickens. They even had numerous rabbits that they raised. Along with their livestock, they also farmed potato, mint, soybean, and corn crops. Needless to say, living on the farm kept Millie busy in more ways than one.

When her children grew older, Millie started working outside the home again. In 1963 she got a job at Schultz Brothers Department Store where she remained for the next 26 years. After Schultz closed down, she started working at Ames Department Store and at the Columbia City Wal-Mart from where she eventually retired. In addition to caring for her family and working, Millie was an active member of Coesse United Methodist Church. She was involved with the United Methodist Women, I-NE-A-BI Home Extension Club, and the Blue Lites Auxiliary of the Union Township Volunteer Fire Department in Coesse.

Life as Millie knew it forever changed in March of 1974 when her beloved husband, Carl passed away. These days were difficult for her, but through the love and support from family and friends, Millie was able to carry on. She remained on the farm, yet after the blizzard of 1978, she was resolved to the fact that she needed to move. By 1980, Millie moved to her current home in Coesse where she would spend the rest of her days.

Millie always worked very hard throughout her life. With the farm, she and Carl never had the opportunity to travel much, and now she had the chance to do so. Millie soon discovered she absolutely loved traveling. In time she came to visit all but five states in the U.S., and among some of her travels, she truly enjoyed visiting Hawaii and Alaska. She also took in destinations such as Ireland and Canada, too.

Becoming a grandmother was the greatest blessing for Millie. She enjoyed babysitting and spending time with her grandchildren. Together with her daughter and grandchildren, she enjoyed golfing with her family. She was quite the bowler and competed on a local league where she formed her own team in Columbia City. Millie's cooking continued to be the best, especially her beef and noodles and her delicious pies which will most certainly be missed. At Christmastime, Millie put her own special touch to everything she did, and her Christmas candy, treats, and spice cake were all family favorites. As a talented seamstress, Millie even made her son, Carl and his family shirts for the truck pulls they competed in. She was also quite a knitter and made each of her grandchildren Afghans sure to be treasured.

Millie enjoyed working on crossword puzzles in the daily newspaper. She also loved working on large puzzles she'd put together on her card table over the course of a few weeks in her spare time. She was also was an avid reader of various types of books. More than anything, Millie relished sharing the company of her family. She was just as nurturing as a grandmother, great-grandmother, and great-great-grandmother as she was to her own children. She reveled in watching her family grow and took pride in each of their accomplishments. Although life will never be the same without Millie, her family finds comfort knowing her legacy continues in the hearts of those she has left behind.
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© 2005 Columbia City High School Alumni Association     This page last modified 09/27/2006