Obituary of Joseph Alban Mills

Joseph Alban Mills was born February 8, 1932 in Edmonton, Alberta. He came to Saskatchewan and settled on the Mills farm in the Marchant Grove district. In 1939 he moved with his parents to Ordale. Joe attended Bygland School in the Ordale district. He attended Sunday School and was confirmed at Concordia Lutheran Church. At a young age he started working for various farmers in the area. Since he had no means of transportation then, he did a lot of walking. The first car he had was a 1929 Model A. For a while he bought used vehicles, but in the late 1960's, he bought a new car. He drove that for quite a while and then bought a van. After driving this for some time, he started driving trucks. He had a camper on one of those trucks and enjoyed a holiday to Jasper and Banff. Joe began working for the CN in 1967. He took the opportunity to travel with trips to Toronto and the west coast. Joe retired from the CN in 1993. He lived in Marcelin and then moved to Homestead Place in Shellbrook. Joe enjoyed hockey games at the rink and was very happy to receive a plaque from the Shellbrook Elks Hockey Club for goal judging in 2000-2001. He liked to ride his scooter to watch ballgames and enjoyed going for coffee, always making sure that he was home in time to watch "The Price is Right" and "Jeopardy." He loved to read and play rummy. He looked forward to Christmas gatherings and his birthday parties, wherever they took place. He liked riding on the combine in the fall and farm life in general. His last few months at the Big River Health Centre were made special by the exceptional care he received from the wonderful staff. He bore his final illness with a quiet acceptance, was appreciative of the care he received, and asked for nothing. Joe's life was not easy but he never said a bad word about anyone-an example for us all. Joe passed away on August 10, 2011. A graveside service was held for Joe in the Shellbrook Cemetery on Tuesday, August 16 at 2:00pm. Pastor Bob Jarock, a friend of Joe's, was the officiant. Memorial donations may be made to the Shellbrook and Districts Health Services Project.