Mrs. Charlene Kay Mills

We put aside our grief momentarily to announce the passing of Charlene Kay Mills, 55, of Wesley Chapel, Florida, who ended her battle with brain cancer on July 19, 2025, surrounded by her caring family. A singular woman who lit up every room she entered, shining her optimism and laughter into every conversation, she lived a life indelibly marked by love and caring. With her loud antics and little dances she would do when excited, her unique energy was infectious, and her joy, even more so. She cherished her family, her friends, and her co-workers, and was in turn cherished by all who knew her. Her practices of sharing her baked goods, going on weekend adventures with her husband, their friend David Stephens, and daughter, as well as her love of giving gifts to anyone for any reason, will be remembered fondly by all she touched in life. She loved her children more than anything else in the world, telling anyone and everyone who would listen about them, even during work, when she taught Basic Life Support classes as a CPR Instructor. Charlene was born at MacDill Air Force Base and was raised in Tampa. She is survived by: her husband of 33 years Jason Mills; one son, Jacob Mills (Hailie); one daughter, Ileayah Mills (Eleanor); as well as her parents, Marsha Evans and Jim Ward; her grandmother, Doris Bowles; and her siblings, Michael Ward, Robert Evans, Courtney Evans, Jonathan Horne, and Kevin Evans. Throughout her life, she dearly missed her late sister, Tiffany Evans. In addition, she is survived by Dale and Micki Nixon, neighbors turned family, for whom she reserved in her heart a place of reverence and affection. In life, Charlene was a constant reminder of the power and strength of love. In death, she serves as a reminder that while we all perish, death only truly comes when the mark we made in life fades away. By that metric, Charlene Mills is immortal.

A note from her daughter…

Charlene wore her heart on her sleeve, and was never afraid to be who she was and damn anyone who didn't like it- whether she was dancing to her music at Disney and singing along like nobody was watching, never using her inside voice at work, utterly unafraid of making a new friend in her own little ways in any given setting, even trying on clothes over ones she was currently wearing in thrift stores- words could never truly shine the way she did every day, no beautiful poetry or song could quite describe the woman, the friend, the mother that she was. Loud, boisterous, fun, loving, sweet- no word quite gets Charlene quite right, except that she is utterly loved by everyone around her. I will never forget how she has never once hesitated to help, talk, be around, or love me. She was the best mom anyone could ever ask for, including me. Her love was impenetrable, and I can only hope she knows how much I loved her, too, and I always will.

I love you, Mama. Thank you. For everything.