Elsie Miller

What can we say about our Mom?

Let us tell you a little story about the wonderful, loving, person she was.

Mom was a depression era baby born on the 13th of January in 1929 to her parents Porter and Emily Taggert (Poppa and Nana to us). She was the youngest of three children. Her sister Emily was the eldest (Mom called her Babe) and her brother Porter was her best friend. She was born in Queens, New York in an area called Richmond Hill where her family lived in a modest three bedroom house.

She didn't have a typical childhood for that time. Mom was lucky and had a happy childhood. She went to a girls summer camp each summer and other times she would go out to the country with the family to a town called Bayshore, Long Island, New York. You know, one of those old sea towns you picture in your mind when you hear the name "Long Island". Mom and her siblings would visit their Grandparents who lived in a large home with a wrap-around porch on a tree-lined street surrounded by woods. Mom and her brother would go on adventures in to town to visit their Grandfather's shoe shop which just happened to be next door to a bakery called Entenmann's Bakery (for perhaps a cookie or two). From town, they would go down to the Great South Bay where she discovered a love for swimming that would be with her for the rest of her life. Oh, and yes, they had a dog that would come with them on their adventures called "Bootsie" (he looked like the one from The Little Rascals).

When she was a little older, in her late teens, she became quite the skater (roller skating!) and that is how she would meet our Dad, William (Bill). Mom and Dad would date for several years and eventually marry in September of 1949. They had their honeymoon where everyone wanted to go, Niagara Falls, New York. They spent their early married years in Queens, New York and then headed out to the burbs like everyone did back then, to plant some roots.

Well, it wasn't too long before they had children of their own- Patricia,William,Wayne, Donald and Doreen. Lucky for us kids, we lived and grew up on Long Island, New York where Mom and Dad would take us to the great beaches. Mom taught us all how to swim, where she as a young girl learned herself.

We grew up, and like a lot of families today moved to different parts of the country. Our Mom moved to Florida after our Dad passed away in 2000. There she had girlfriends that she did everything with and daughter Doreen and son Wayne were always close by for all the smiles, dinners, birthdays.

And yes, the place where she lived had a pool where she would go swimming everyday...

Words cannot say enough about a special lady like our Mom. She was someone that had a full life, was spunky, a bit of a tomboy as a girl, she was a loving wife, Mom, Grandmother & Great-Grandmother (Nanny). She was always happy with her children whether you called her on the phone every day or once in a while. She loved us all.

Our Mom passed away on Sunday, January 8, 2023, just 5 days shy of her 94th birthday. She is survived by her 5 children, 6 grandchildren, and 4 great-grandchildren.

We love you Mom and you will always be with us all.

Fond memories and expressions of sympathy may be shared at www.dorsey-smithmemorygardens.com for the Miller family.