William James Miller, Jr.

William James Miller, Jr., known as Skip, was born November 29, 1939, to Maxine Sengelmann Miller and William J. “Billy” Miller, Sr., of Waelder, Texas.   He died at 84, on February 26, 2024.

Growing up in Waelder, Skip often helped at  his family’s Millers Store, where you could buy everything from televisions sets to wood stoves, from fire arms and groceries to feed and  fertilizer, from fabric and shoes to the best barbeque in Texas. 

At Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, he enjoyed his classes, Kappa Sigma Fraternity, the San Gabriel River, and campus life.  He met his future wife, Sandra Elliott, at SU and they married June 1, 1963.  Skip had joined the United States Air Force after his graduation in 1962, and the newlyweds returned to Madison, Wisconsin, where he was stationed at Truax Field.  After a year in Viet Nam, his last year of active service was spent at Bergstrom AFB, Austin, Texas, where the couple’s first daughter, Susan Michelle Miller, was born. 

Skip brought his family back to Waelder, where he helped his father at Millers Store and established Harwood Farm and Ranch Supply.  He also taught history at Gonzales High School during 1969-1971, started his own cattle operation, continued to serve as a captain in the USAF Reserves, and the couple’s second daughter, Stacy Elizabeth Miller, was born.  Following the close of Millers Store after 113 years of operation, Skip enjoyed being a rural mail carrier, learning new country roads and talking to folks at their mailboxes.

Skip was a member of the Gonzales County Hospital District Board of Directors when the Gonzales Memorial Hospital was planned and built, and he continued to serve on the Gonzales County Health Foundation, Inc., Board of Directors from 1983 to 1997. The Mesquite Horse Club, The Gonzales Livestock Show, and the 4-H Shooting Sports Team gave him the opportunity to work with his daughters and other young people. In 1985, he was awarded the Honorary Chapter Farmer Degree.  Skip served on the board of the Gonzales Soil and Water District from 1993-2000. 

In 2012, he received Gonzales County’s Outstanding Conservation Rancher award, and in 2013, Region III’s Resident Conservation Rancher Award.  His family’s one hundred-year-old ranch on Sandy Fork was enrolled in the Texas Land Heritage Program in 2004.

Skip enjoyed:  hunting for (and particularly FINDING) arrowheads and artifacts, history (especially Greek and Roman), land (especially west Texas), old cars (especially Model A Fords), a good conversation, all dogs, and most cattle. 

Honorary pallbearers: Clint, Wain, Ace, Jason, Jake, Duke, Travis, J.W., and  James Fairchild, Wesley Oliver, James Lassig, Ricky Berger, Lester Henry, and Jim McGinnis.

Skip was preceded in death by his parents and his sister Lorraine McHugh.

To remember him with joy and love, Skip leaves Sandra, his wife of 60 years; daughter Susan and her husband Kevin Schields; daughter Stacy and her husband Brian Good; and his grandson, Jake Miller Good; niece Kathy Snider, and husband Alan; nephew Robert McHugh and wife Karen; brother-in-law Bill Elliott and his wife, Gayle Unruh; his first cousins Ginna Bullock and husband, Charles; Bo Miller and wife, Sharon Reed; and Suzanne Maeker and husband, Kenwood.

The family thanks Lynn Hancock and her staff for the compassionate care Skip received at Willowbrook Personal Care Home in Seguin.

A memorial for Skip Miller will be held at 10:00 Saturday, March 16, 2024, at Seydler-Hill Funeral Home.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Waelder Homecoming Foundation, Inc., or the Alzheimer’s Association.

Friends may sign the guestbook and leave condolences by visiting www.seydlerhillfuneralhome.com

Arrangements are under the care and direction of Seydler-Hill Funeral Home, Gonzales, TX