Marguerite (Maggie) Guy Miller Obituary (1922 - 2021)

Edna Marguerite Guy Miller, a beloved daughter, wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother and great-great-grandmother passed away peacefully at her home on Sunday, April 18, 2021, surrounded by her loving family. Marguerite was born June 21,1922 in Jacksonville, Florida. At the age of three, she was lovingly chosen and adopted to be the daughter of Warren and Edna Allen Guy. She grew up in balmy St. Petersburg, Florida, where she was cherished by her parents, developed lifelong friendships, and met and married her childhood sweetheart, Dr. Robert (Bob) Harvey Miller on Aug. 14, 1943. They celebrated 64 years of marriage before Bob’s death in 2007. As an adult, Marguerite decided that her name was too long, constantly misspelled, often mispronounced, and entirely too “proper” for such a free spirit, so she decided to shorten it to “Maggie”. Her children and childhood friends still called her Marguerite, but later family members, friends, acquaintances, colleagues, and anyone in her huge circle of life only knew her as “Maggie”. Maggie fits such a loving, vibrant woman! Both Maggie and her husband were life-long educators. Maggie graduated with a Bachelor's Degree in Education from Florida State College for Women (later becoming Florida State University) followed by a Master’s Degree in Education from the University of Florida. She obtained sufficient advanced credits beyond her Masters Degree to receive a doctorate in education. However, she said there were too many other things she wanted to do. She would “leave that degree to Bob”. She was regularly seen wearing her “Gators'' sweater, cheering with gusto when the Florida State Seminoles or the University of Florida Gators were playing, and yelling at referees that she felt had made wrong calls. None were immune from Maggie’s encouragement to “get an education” which she considered the best life insurance anyone could have. Maggie had a variety of interests which she shared with others. Her distinguished career included service as an English teacher, a school administrator, and during her retirement years, a tax consultant for both H&R Block and AARP. She spent countless volunteer hours helping others in a variety of community organizations and projects. She knitted beautiful sweaters for her family and friends, cooked award-winning lasagna and traditional “southern” recipes (think cheese grits and okra), remembered ALL birthdays and sent cards to everyone she had ever known, wrote beautiful, thoughtful letters to family and friends, stuck tissues (clean) in the pages of books to locate pages she wanted to review, kept an extensive card file of books and authors (with annotations) she had read, had an address book filled with names and addresses of friends and acquaintances throughout the world, and opened her heart and home to folks she met throughout the years. The Miller House was a “home away from home” for numerous visitors. To all who knew and loved her, she was known as an avid reader who always had a book in her hand, bag, purse, and eventually the seat compartment of her walker. Most conversations with Maggie began with “so, what are you reading?” followed closely by “if you like that one, you might like to read....” She was a wonderful conversationalist with a quick wit and infectious sense of humor. Her grandchildren always wanted to be the one sitting next to her, because her arms never got tired of giving the best back, neck and head scratches with her beautiful nails. She is survived by her children Lyn Burningham (Stephen), Utah; Robert Harvey Miller, Jr. (Susan), Florida; and Clifford Miller (Sheryl), Florida. “Grandma Maggie” is deeply loved by seven grandchildren, thirteen great-grandchildren, and three great-great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her cherished husband, Bob, and a precious great-grandson, Forrest. It was an honor to be one of her “numbered”. The family will hold a private memorial service later this year to lay Bob and Maggie to rest together in their beloved Florida. Online condolences and memories may be left at www.jenkins-soffe.com. The family wishes to thank the staff of Carrington Court, South Jordan, Utah, for their loving and generous service to her over the last five years and in her final days. We offer a special thanks to Mindy, who has provided extraordinary medical support, love, tenderness, and constant devotion to Maggie. We will love and miss you Grandma Maggie until we see you again.