Helen Miller (neé Brannan)

November 12, 1948 - July 13, 2012

Helen Elaine (Brannan) Miller, 63, of Omaha, Nebraska died on July 13, 2012, at Omaha’s Lakeside Hospital after a short hospitalization.

She was born in Villisca, Iowa, on November 12, 1948, to the late Irma (neé Bornand) and Robert Brannan, who farmed southwest of Villisca. She attended Villisca schools where she was active in drama, speech and music; she also worked on the high school paper and the yearbook. Following graduation in 1966, she attended Northwest Missouri State College and Iowa State University.

Helen worked as a State of Nebraska Social Worker in Omaha for many years, and described her employment there as the "best job ever" because she was able to help people every day. She also worked for the Quest Dex yellow pages for several years. At the time of her death, she was retired and was looking forward to returning to the family farm in Villisca where she planned to build a retirement cottage. Unfortunately she died from Lou Gehrig’s Disease before she could implement her homecoming.

She was survived by her long time companion Joe Lake of Omaha, her daughter Laura Miller of Phoenix, Arizona, her son David Miller and his wife Vesna, also of Phoenix; two grandchildren, Patrick and Magdalena Miller of Phoenix; three brothers Maury (Judy) of Enid, Oklahoma, Bob (Nancy) of Omaha, and Jim (Cheryl) of Central, South Carolina. She was also survived by nieces, nephews, other relatives, and many friends.

A memorial service and luncheon were held at the Villisca Community Center at 11:00 a.m. on August 4, 2012. The service was led by Pastor Sandy Wainwright from the Presbyterian Church of Villisca. Following the service, Helen's remains were interred next to those of her parents at the North Page Cemetery.

This obituary was written by Linda Artlip and Bob Brannan in July 2012.