Frances Maxine Work was born in Haxtun Colorado to Jack & Alma Work on August 18, 1928. Maxine graduated from Haxtun High School in 1946. She wanted to follow her "big sister" and become a beautician so off she went to the Charles Denver Beauty School where she received her formal training as a beautician. After graduation, she responded to a job opening with a beauty salon in Walsh, Colorado. Unbeknownst to her at the time, her first job would take her to a small farming community in southeast Colorado where she would marry the love of her life, have three sons and spend the rest of her life. In 1947 she went to work for Pansy Walker who operated a beauty salon on the second floor of the Walsh Variety Store. Little did she know at the time that one day she and her future husband would own and operate that very same store for over 40 years. Maxine was walking home from work one evening in October of 1947 when a young man by the name of Billie Lee Miller pulled over in his 1941 Chevy Pickup and offered her a ride home. Billie, who was a total stranger to her at the time, must have really been stylin in his 41 Chevy, because even though she was just a block away from home, she said yes. I think it's pretty clear where this is going. Knowing a good thing when he saw it, Billie put on the full court press and married her the following spring on April 4, 1948. Maxine continued to work for Pansy for the next three years until Pansy closed her shop and moved away. She then went to work for RB Holt at Colorado State Bank as a teller and book keeper for the next five years. They lived in several different rental properties until they bought their first home in 1950. They paid a whopping $5,000. About four years later, Billie's love of farming moved them out of that house and into a sod house about 20 miles east of Walsh. Curtis was a baby at the time and a rat got into the house and bit him while he was in his baby bed. Mom was standing at the door with Curtis in her arms when dad came home that night and she quickly announced, we're moving to town and back they came. Marlo came along in the blizzard of January 1957 with Bradley to follow on July 8, 1959. She and Bill began developing life long friendships with other couples such as Hardin & Lois Dykes, Leon & Virgil Harlan, Cad & Oleta Forgey and Melvin & Ruth Stults to name a few. Many evenings and weekends were spent playing cards and catching the weekend dances. They would work several different jobs over the next 12 years, both full-time and part-time, but one in particular would set the course of their life for the next 40 years. In 1960, Maxine was working some part time hours at the Walsh Variety Store for Pat & Lois Godfrey when Pat landed the job at the Post Office and decided to sell the store. She encouraged Bill to buy the business. He borrowed a $1,000 on a life insurance policy and signed an owner carry note for $13,000 to buy the inventory and fixtures. Approximately five years later they purchased the building for $8,000, and as they say, the rest is history. The old ice cream fountain would create a lot of fond memories for people over the next eight years. Who can forget the free banana split you got on your birthday every year. Maxine's primary job was keeping the books and taking care of the administrative duties necessary to keep a small business operating successfully. In 1967 they purchased the old pool hall building to the north, cut a doorway in the wall, and started adding merchandise to their new building. A final expansion took place in 1978 when they bought the Dykes Furniture building, knocked another doorway in the wall and filled that building with merchandise. I guess you could say that Walsh had finally arrived, we had our own shopping mall. The big city's got nothing on us! Maxine's career took another turn when she went to work for the local hospital/nursing home as an activities assistant to Colleen Jones. When Colleen decided to retire and move, Maxine went to Pratt Community College in 1985 and obtained her certification to become the new activities Director at the facility. She would work in the activities department off and on for the next seven years while continuing to support Bill as the book keeper for the store. She would officially retire in 2000. Maxine's faith was the driving force in her life. She was active in her church and in Women's Aglow ministry. She didn't just talk the talk, she walked the walk. Her home was always available to host bible studies and gatherings for church activities. She enjoyed playing the organ at the different churches she attended over the years. Terms such as sacrificial, compassionate, kind hearted, generous, all come to mind when thinking about how she lived out her faith. She was the happiest when she had all of her family together enjoying fellowship, fun and good food, especially homemade noodles and mashed potatoes. In the last six years of her life, Maxine battled Alzheimer's disease, which is what ultimately took her life. On November 2, 2019, at the age of 91, she went home to be with her Lord and Savior. Maxine is preceded in death by her father & mother Jack & Alma Work, brother Quincy "Jack" Johnson, sister Florence Fleming and son Bradley Miller. She is survived by her husband of 71 years, Bill Miller living in Walsh, two sons, Curtis Miller & wife Gwen living in Walsh, Marlo Miller & wife Lynn living in Wichita Kansas, three grandchildren Derek living in Rangley Colorado, Sandy Ide & husband Brent living in McPherson Kansas, Leslie Peterson & husband Chris living in Gilbert Arizona and three great grandchildren Brooklynn, Miles, Harper and soon to be added, baby Peterson who is due in May. As a family, we wish to extend our thanks and appreciation to the nurses and staff at the Walsh Healthcare center for taking care of our loved over the last few years of her life. We also wish to extend our thanks to Dykes Funeral Home for going above and beyond in helping us a family honor our loved one. While she will be missed on this earth, those who know Jesus as Lord can rest assured, we will see her once again, and into eternity we will go, never to be separated again.