Hazel Mildred Miller

Passed away July 8, 2026, at her home in Davenport, surrounded by her son and daughter. She passed peacefully and was able to remain living in her house until her passing, which was one of her greatest desires. She was born August 5, 1939, the 3rd child to Harold & Mildred (Golland) Buell in Chewelah, Washington. She lived near Addy until the spring of 1944, when her parents moved to Whitstran for a couple of years until they moved to Prosser. She started 1st grade at Prosser but moved to Davenport to start high school in 1953. She lived with Terry & Bea Buchser and their three children; Ron, Rollie, and Rodney, until graduation in 1957. During high school, she attended Davenport Methodist Church and Methodist Youth Fellowship. She became a true Davenport Gorilla throughout her entire life because of the warm reception she received when moving to Davenport as a freshman. She had a job at Old National Bank waiting for her after she graduated from high school in June. Clark and Hazel were married June 15, 1958, in the Davenport Methodist Church, with Reverend Eugene Ford officiating. They honeymooned in British Columbia, Canada. Upon returning, they lived at 8th & Washington until the fall of 1961 when they moved to the farm, north of Mondovi. Hazel was baptized by Reverend Joseph Woodford, and Clark and Hazel joined the Davenport Methodist Church in 1964. Hazel worked at Old National Bank until the arrival of their adopted son Vince on April 6th, 1965, who was born March 12th, 1965. Vince was baptized December 26th, 1965, with his Uncle Ting & Aunt Margaret Baker as his Godparents. Daughter Lisa was born a year later on March 22, 1966. Lisa was baptized April 30th,1967 with her Uncle Myrl & Aunt Mary Miller as her Godparents. Hazel helped Sylvia Stone with Blue Bird Girls in 1973 and 1974. In 1975, she became leader of Camp Fire Girls with Arliene Jungblom as co-leader until Lisa graduated in 1984. She started working outside the home part time in October 1984 at Lincoln County Pharmacy for Tom and Yvonne Paul until her retirement in December 2007, serving several years as manager of the state liquor store that was part of Lincoln County Pharmacy. Grandson Christopher Miller was born May 5th, 1986, to Lisa. Babysitting became a big part of the days that Hazel was not working. Christopher started living full time with Clark and Hazel when he was 9 years old until his graduation from Davenport High School in June 2004. Hazel was an animal lover and always had a dog as a pet except for a very few years, ending with her dog Kati.

Hazel’s passions included sewing and crocheting, working in her flower garden and watching the yearly hummingbird guests, canning and cooking, entertaining and being extremely active in the United Methodist Church. She was a devout Christian and active in the United Methodist Women, as well as singing in the church choir for many years. Hazel loved to sing, whether at home or in church, and was proud of her beautiful voice. She was also known to send handwritten cards to many people in her beautiful penmanship. She sent cards for holidays, a needed thank you, congratulations or whatever the reason, you could expect to receive a note in the mail. It was something she took great pride in. Her greatest passion was her family and friends, birthdays and holidays, in which she would fully decorate her house for every occasion. Few had more passion for holidays, especially Christmas, in which her house reflected this. She loved Christmas and often spent half the year locating the perfect gift for each individual. Hazel loved her family and the tradition for decades was to have family reunions every two years so all the siblings and cousins could remain close and make incredible memories. Hazel is survived by her two children Vince Miller and Lisa Miller, grandchildren Christopher Miller and Leah Gurske-Hill ("adopted" by Clark & Hazel in 2005), great grandchildren Elijah (Eli) Gurske ("adopted" October 6th, 2005) and Kalli Hill ("adopted" 2012), her sister Della Minchew, her brother Gerald "Jerry" (Debbie) Buell, and numerous nieces and nephews. Hazel is preceded in death by her parents, husband Clark Miller (2015), brother Laurence Buell, Margaret & Ting Baker (sister and brother-in-law), brother Glenn Buell, brother-in-law John Minchew, brother-in-law and sister-in-law Myrl & Mary Miller and nephew Lawrence Buell, Jr. Memorials may be made to the Lincoln Hospital Foundation, 10 Nicholl St., Davenport, WA 99122. Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.strate-funeral.com. STRATE FUNERAL HOME, DAVENPORT, WA is caring for the family.