Marjorie Arlene Miller of Arlington, Massachusetts, passed away on Advent Sunday, Nov. 28, 2021. Born to Clyde Blank and Gladys Sommers Blank on Mar. 23, 1929, in Munson Township, Illinois. A graduate of J.D. Darnall High School, Geneseo, Illinois Class of 1946, she attended Northern Illinois University. Marjorie was employed at John Deere Harvester, East Moline, Illinois until moving to Massachusetts in 1956. United in marriage to Dwayne Henry Miller (of Geneseo, Illinois) at the First Presbyterian Church, Geneseo, Illinois on June 6, 1950. They were married 58 years. After retirement, they moved to Beaver Lake, Arkansas, and then moved to Gulf Shores, Alabama. They also resided in Massachusetts, Iowa, Missouri and Virginia. After the passing of Dwayne in 2009, she returned to her hometown of Geneseo, Illinois, and began attending the First Lutheran Church of Geneseo, Illinois.
Marjorie was a devoted wife, mother, and grandmother. She lived life to the fullest, enjoying being a children’s Sunday school teacher and church hand bell ringer. She was a 70-year member of the Eastern Star. Marjorie felt deep American patriotism. As an active community volunteer for several organizations, she was a PTA treasurer, homeroom mother, Campfire Girls of America troop leader and summer camp counselor. She enjoyed golf club tournaments, bowling on the Woodsmill subdivision league, card clubs, crossword and jigsaw puzzles, reading novels, and painting spectacular pictures in oil and watercolor. Her talent was making beautiful heirloom quilts, and as a fine clothing seamstress was admired. Marjorie and Dwayne enjoyed country dancing, square dancing, and ballroom dancing with their friends at dance clubs in Arkansas and Alabama, and she displayed her sharp sense of humor during fun family game nights. In her fifties she became a manicurist and worked at a salon in Rogers, Arkansas. What fun they had on their European vacations. Annual Family summer reunions brought great joy to the entire family. Dwayne and Marjorie made and maintained meaningful friendships throughout their lives.
Known to her grandchildren as “BG” for “Best Grandma”, Marjorie lived up to the title by making each of them feel all of her love.
Survived by: her brother Dwayne (Amie) Blank of Geneseo, Illinois, daughter Diana (Roy) Miller, son Matthew (Jennifer) Miller, six grandchildren, nine great-grandchildren and several nephews, nieces and cousins.
There will be no memorial service. At a later date, the immediate family will pay their final respects to Marjorie and the love of her life, Dwayne, by scattering their ashes together near their lake house built in the Ozark Mountains of Arkansas. In lieu of flowers, the family encourages contributions to be made to either of the following charities in memory of Marjorie Miller: Casa Connection, Inc. https://casaconnection.org or Shriners Hospital for Children, https://lovetotherescue.org.
