Maria Augusta (Pfeiffer) Miller

Mrs. Maria Augusta “Ria” Miller, 93, of Granger, passed away peacefully of natural causes in the comfort of her own home on Thursday, Sept. 30, 2021 at 10:38 am. She was born on September 8, 1928 in the quaint little hamlet of Kitzingen, Germany to the late Johann Pfeiffer family. Ria had quite a number of siblings, and she is the last of her side of the family. On August 23, 1951, Ria married Floyd E. Miller in Kitzingen. Floyd was an American soldier stationed near there, and they remained in the Kitzingen area until well after the children had been born. Floyd passed in Elkhart February of 2010.

Surviving their mother are children Lorie D. (Gregory) Hinshaw of St. Charles, Missouri; Floyd E. Miller of Granger and Gerald M. Miller of Las Cruces, New Mexico; and grandchildren Brenna (Steven) Dickerson, Quentin Hinshaw and Jason Miller.

Ria was a simply, private lady and in accordance with her wishes, cremation is to take place with the assistance of Billings Funeral Home and Cremation Services of Elkhart.  

Ria was the quintessential little German lady. Quiet, demure and neat as a pin, Ria took great pride in the orderliness and cleanliness of her home, tending to all of her domestic responsibilities with faithful regularity. She was a prolific knitter and loved to busy herself with making all sorts of scarves, gloves, hats and comforters for everyone in the family and then some! She was also a big fan of her grandchildren, and they loved coming to Oma’s house because there’d always be fresh cookies or other home baked pastries like lebkuchen, kirsch torte or Schwartzwalder kuchen waiting for them when they arrived!

Finally, it should be mentioned that Ria was a devoutly Christian lady. He children believe that she was born and raised catholic, but she attended the Lutheran Church for as long as they could remember.

  Memorial donations may be given to the charity of one’s choice. Friends and relatives are encouraged to read the entire obit and leave condolences, memories and/or pictures of Ria by clicking “Tribute Wall” on her obituary page on the funeral home’s website and then following the prompts.

“Schlaf in himmlischem frienden, mein Schoen mutte!”

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