Venice Miller Mcgarry

Venice Miller McGarry, 92, of Hamer died Sunday July 17, 2011, at the Heritage Homes Assisted Living Center in Rexburg. Venice was born January 17, 1919 at Parker, Idaho the third daughter of Horace and Ida May Karlson Miller. She attended Parker Elementary School and South Fremont High School. She married Loren McGarry on June 28, 1938. They purchased the McGarry homestead in Kilgore, moved into the two room cabin and began their ranching lives together. To this union they added four children. They enjoyed greeting family and friends who made the trip to Kilgore and welcomed them with a good home-cooked meal. In 1971 they purchased another home in Hamer where they began working the land there, meeting new neighbors and enjoying the life of another small community; but one with a little less snow. Venice was always involved in the cattle operation and farming duties that went with life in the country. Venice and Loren were partners in the work on the ranch. Venice could drive a team of horses, feed stock or change a tire on the car. She fed many large summer haying crews, as well as many cowboys at the yearly fall roundups. She raised chickens, pigs and helped her children earn money by raising bum lambs and calves on the bottle. Summers at Kilgore were busy as Venice always had a garden and canned, froze or pickled everything she could in addition to her regular weekly bread baking and butter making. Venice was a great seamstress and in addition to sewing many of the clothes for her own family, and teaching her daughter to sew, she also sewed uniforms for the drill team at Clark County High School. She crocheted, knitted, embroidered, made rag rugs and was accomplished at all these handicrafts. In addition to her hand work Venice had a very active mind and she had a life-long love of poetry, she loved to draw and she was a voracious reader until the very last years of her life when her vision hindered her reading. Venice was a member of the LDS church and worked in the Relief Society and taught Primary at the Kilgore and Idmon Wards. She also loved to read the scriptures and often gave impromptu lessons on LDS history to her grandchildren and great-grand children. Venice will be warmly remembered by her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren for her love, her spunk, her generosity, her constant encouragement and her sense of humor. Venice Miller McGarry was a true pioneer woman and a positive role model for anyone who met her. She is survived by her sons Loren Pete McGarry, wife Karen; Bradley Jones McGarry, wife Pam and daughter Kristi McGarry Patton, husband Jim. Venice truly loved and reveled in her grandchildren and they are: Misty Neville, Tracy Johnson, Jay Pete McGarry, Toni Wagoner, Dustin Patton, Levi McGarry, and Jacob McGarry. They provided her with 10 great grandchildren which she loved dearly. She was preceded in death by her parents Horace and IdaMay Miller, husband, Loren, son Mike, great granddaughters Mabry Neville and Loren Johnson as well as siblings Ruby Ball, Gladys Rumsey, Dan Miller, Dell Miller and Layne Miller. Funeral services will be held at 1:30 p.m., Friday, July 22, 2011, at the Hamer Ward LDS Chapel. The family will receive friends from 11:30 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. prior to services at the church. Burial will be in the Dubois Cemetery, under the care of Eckersell Memorial Chapel in Rigby.