November 10, 1939 – November 13, 2023
information provided by Barkes Weaver & Glick Funeral
Charlene “Chuckie” Miller-Taylor was welcomed home to be with her loving Father on November 13, 2023. She was 84 years old. Chuckie grew up in Lansing, Illinois, and attended Trinity Lutheran Church and School. When she reminisced of her youth, she spoke of loving to run, jump rope, and play baseball. All who knew Chuckie knew that she loved to make people laugh. She went to great lengths to make a joke or surprise a crowd. Her family and friends were enchanted by her stories and her enthusiasm. Chuckie loved to play cards for hours on end, especially poker at family gatherings. She enjoyed her grandchildren to the fullest!
Chuckie married her high school sweetheart, William “Bill” Schweitzer, and lived in Highland, Indiana, where the two worked at the family business, Schweitzer’s Bakery. They moved to Cedar Lake, Indiana, with their son, Jeffery William. The couple built a home and stables there and raised Appaloosa horses. This relationship lasted seventeen years.
Chuckie continued to move south, living in Fair Oaks, Indiana. She married Herbert Wayne Miller and was blessed with a daughter, Heather Ruth. Herbert battled with cancer and left Chuckie a widow when Heather was only three years old. Chuckie then lived on a farm raising goats and enjoying country living. She felt an attraction to all wildlife and dearly loved her collie, Heidi.
Eventually, Chuckie moved to Brown County, Indiana, where she became a conservationist and rescued all kinds of animals. She was known to bottle-feed rescued baby raccoons and even nurse a doe back to good health. Her compassion for animals was extraordinary. In Brown County, she raised her daughter and worked for the Brown County State Park as an accountant. Chuckie took great pride in her delicious cooking and even had her own business called “Chuckie’s Snacks” that operated out of the The Little Nashville Opry in Nashville, Indiana. Chuckie enjoyed the country musicians and clientele at the Little Opry shows. They would crowd around her food venue listening to her stories and enjoying her famous BBQ sandwiches.
In her later years Chuckie found love once again, marrying Arthur Ray Taylor in 1999. They enjoyed retirement together until Art’s passing. In her final years, she lived with her brother Kenny, her collie Ginger Snap, and her cat Chewy. Even though her eyesight was weak, Chuckie was grateful for all of God’s blessings and shared her assurance that she would meet her Maker in heaven.
Charlene Miller-Taylor is preceded in death by her parents Harry and Ruth (Fiene) Conrad, and her sister Arlene “Bunny” Cohrs. She is survived by her sister Carol Liebers and brothers Duane (Alma) Conrad and Kenneth Conrad; son Jeffery (Beverly) Schweitzer and daughter Heather (Troy) Dover; grandchildren Brandon Schweitzer, Alyssa (Kody) Gorny, Jaedin Miller (Donna) and Tyler Haymaker; great-grandchildren Ezekiell Wayn Miller and Brinley Mae Gorny; and numerous nieces and nephews.
A Celebration of Life ceremony will take place at Trinity Lutheran Church in Lansing, Illinois, on December 2, 2023, at 11:00AM. Visitation will precede the service, beginning at 10:00AM.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made on Chuckie Miller-Taylor’s behalf to:
- Brown County State Park Nature Center
P.O. Box 608
Nashville, IN 47448 - Trinity Lutheran Church Sign Fund
2505 Indiana Ave.
Lansing, IL 60438
