Doreen June Miller of Lynden passed from this life into the next on April 10, 2020, where she is undoubtedly spending time catching up with her mom and dad, her younger brother David, and numerous other family members and friends.
Doreen was born in London, England, on June 30, 1939, two months before England declared war on Germany. Along with the usual “adventures” of childhood, hers also included hiding under tables during the air raids on London, spending time in bomb shelters and being evacuated to the north country of England along with many other children. During this period her younger brother David was born, though he tragically passed away at a very young age.
Doreen’s father, John, served in the Royal Air Force during the war. When the fighting was over, he grew restless and brought his wife Doris and daughter to London, Ontario, in Canada in 1949. Soon they made the move across the border to Flint, Michigan, then eventually pulled a single-wide mobile home across the country to the promised land of sunshine … Los Angeles, California.
In Los Angeles Doreen married Don Simmons and gave birth to her first son, Mark, in 1959. The marriage did not last long, and Doreen and Mark moved back in with her parents. Around 1966 the family moved to Tigard, Oregon, but Doreen married Allan Miller, a man she had been dating in Los Angeles, and she and Mark moved back to LA in 1967. They remained in the Los Angeles area until 1970 when they too moved north to Oregon.
In February 1978 Doreen and Allan were blessed with a son, David, and Doreen had the opportunity to raise a second “only” child, 18 years after the first one. Unfortunately, the marriage of Doreen and Allan ended after the death of Doreen’s mother and after David had moved out on his own to California, and Doreen moved to Lynden, Washington, to be close to Mark, daughter-in-law Julie, and grandchildren Sarah and Wesley. David married too, giving Doreen another daughter in Rithmaly, and together they gave her a third grandchild, Harrison.
Doreen loved her family and friends, books, The Crown, British movies and TV shows on PBS, and puttering around in her garden. She had a special fondness for animals, especially dogs, and had many canine companions throughout her life. We like to believe that she has reunited with them all now.
We plan to have a memorial service at a future date when this can be done safely. A private family scattering of ashes will also be held in Tigard, Oregon, when possible. Arrangements are through the Neptune Society.
