Marie Miller

Our dear sister, Marie Miller, was born on March 14, 1946, in Coleman, Texas, in the first wave of Baby Boomers. She died in Fort Worth, Texas on January 13, 2016. Visitation will be Friday, January 22 from 6:00 - 8:00 PM at Stevens Funeral Home, 400 West Pecan Street, Coleman. Funeral service will be Saturday, January 23 at 11:00 AM at the First United Methodist Church Coleman, 500 West Liveoak Street, Coleman, with Rev. Brad Slaten officiating. Services are under the direction of Stevens Funeral Home.
Marie was the oldest child of W. H. and Billie Marie Miller of Rapid City, South Dakota and Coleman, and the oldest grandchild of J.P. and Mary Miller of Coleman and W.C. and Winnie Miller of Snyder. She was preceded in death by her parents, grandparents and brother, W. H. Miller II. She is survived by her sisters, Ann Servant and husband, Bill, of Arizona, Julie Shaw and husband, Dave, of Colorado; nieces Sara Gonzales and husband, Jaime, and Callie Best of Arizona; nephews Jason Best of Nevada, James Shaw and wife, Sarai, and John Shaw of Colorado; grandniece Josephine Gonzales; grandnephews Joey and Connor Shaw; aunt and uncle Ann and James Hargett of Fort Worth and many cousins and friends in North and South Dakota, Arizona, Hawaii, California, Texas, and around the world.
Marie was born in Coleman and moved with her parents to a ranch in Ziebach County between Dupree and Isabel, South Dakota, in the spring of 1947. She attended Liebelt Country School through 8th grade, a one-room school house near the ranch and another in Hermosa, South Dakota. The family moved to Mobridge, South Dakota in 1959 so Marie could attend high school. The next year the family moved to Rapid City where Marie graduated Cum Laude in 1964 from Rapid City High School. She enjoyed attending her 50th high school reunion last year. Marie passed the ACT test with a perfect score and with multiple academic scholarships in hand, attended Colorado Women's College in Denver, Colorado for two years. After a summer trip to Hawaii, Marie completed a year at the University of Hawaii where she met her first husband, Richard Oku. They were married on January 1, 1969 in South Dakota and moved to San Francisco, California where Marie was a manager at Macy's Department Store for many years. In San Francisco Marie volunteered on famous political campaigns of the day and the historical society saving treasured building sites in the city. She also purchased and maintained a condo in Lake Tahoe and with her vast artistic talents created a business designing one-of-a-kind belts and fashion accessories of leather and stone. Marie then lived in Arizona for 20 years where she maintained multiple rental properties and traveled the world. In 2002 Marie returned to Coleman to care for our mother until her passing in 2007. She has lived on the headquarters of the Rafter 3 Ranch since then, managing through the lengthy recent drought. Marie purchased and renovated three homes in Coleman and negotiated the purchase of two pastures that were part of the original Rafter 3 holdings. Marie read voraciously and had an impressive library of books of every kind. She was also a collector of dolls, dishes, and historical relics.
A more interesting, gracious, generous, glamorous, and kind soul you will never meet. Artist, vocalist, animal lover, historian, innovator, rancher, and true Morris woman, we love Marie and will always miss her.
A memorial scholarship will be established in Marie's honor for young women seeking a degree in ranch management.
Condolences may be left online at www.livingmemorials.com.