Debra Ann Miller

Debra "Debbie" Ann Miller, age 74, passed away peacefully at home in Elgin, IL on January 18, 2026, following her courageous battle with frontotemporal dementia. She was born in Albany, CA on November 17, 1951 to Harry and Lillian (née Lynch) Morse.

Debbie lived most of her childhood in South Lake Tahoe, CA and graduated from South Lake Tahoe High School in 1969. She continued her education at Diablo Community College and San Francisco City College, earning an associate degree. Debbie always had a dream of traveling and being a flight attendant. Her dream came true when she answered a newspaper ad and interviewed for a job with United Airlines. She was chosen as a flight attendant and worked for United for ten years, from 1973 to 1983. Her career was filled with numerous stories of meeting famous people and celebrities.

In February 1978, she met her next-door neighbor, John, and over the next ten years, they forged a long-lasting friendship. John became her best friend and they eventually fell in love and were married on November 18, 1989, in Pleasant Hill, CA. They had been married 36 years at the time of her passing.

Both were blessed with the birth of their daughter, Lyndsey, on March 23, 1992. Debbie was a devoted wife and loving mother. She elected to be a stay at home mom and dedicated her life to raise Lyndsey in the best manner she could. She drove Lyndsey everywhere and helped out at Lyndsey's Catholic grade school and all-girls Catholic high school. She was both strict and fair in developing Lyndsey into the kind sweet young woman she is today.

Debbie continued her love for travel after she stopped flying. She especially liked to take cruises and went on many of them, as they offered the best value and opportunity to see numerous countries throughout the world. Even though she had trouble walking she was able to check off most of her bucket list by cruising to the Panama Canal (2022), Barcelona and Rome (2023), and Greece and Turkey (2024). She loved to read and Mary Higgins Clark was her favorite author. She taught herself to knit and the house became filled with all sorts of knitted favorites. She enjoyed walking and would walk four days a week until the disease changed her behavior. She also enjoyed cooking and several hits in our home were chicken pot pie, focaccia, tacos, and petit pain pastries. She loved animals, including horses, and through the years had numerous cats and dogs as pets. She helped a neighbor with her pet sitting business, even to the point of fostering stray kittens and helping them to be adopted at the local Petsmart. More often than not, Debbie could be seen sitting on the couch or chair either reading or knitting, with cats draped all over her.

Debbie was very generous, either through knitted presents or for providing platelets to the Red Cross. She donated over 80 units of platelets to help cancer patients. She sponsored Yadira, a foster child in Nicaragua, for ten years for an organization called the Christian Foundation for Children and Aging (now called Unbound). She had an opportunity to travel with her family to Nicaragua on a mission awareness trip to visit her sponsored child and her family. That was a deeply rewarding experience.

Debbie was an active member of Clipped Wings, a nationwide organization comprised of retired United Airlines flight attendants. She was a member of the San Diego chapter and later the Chicago/ORD chapter. She enjoyed going to the monthly luncheons with the other ladies and helping in their charitable endeavors. She was quick to volunteer and was the registered agent for the organization for several years.

Debbie was fun loving and adventurous. She was a go-getter, always trying something new. She even signed up for movies and became an onscreen extra on the movie Home Alone. She made sure to let everyone know when that scene came up. It was always a treat to see her on the TV and we look forward in years to come to see her every Christmas when the movie is shown. Her smile lit up a room. She had an infectious laugh and people loved being with her.

Debbie is survived by her beloved husband, John; her loving daughter, Lyndsey; her sister, Barbara Wahlborg (Jean Yanich); her brothers-in-law, Michael Miller (Shirley Powers), Peter Miller (Emily Hubertus), and Paul Miller (Mayela); her sister-in-law, Mary Felton (Dave); her nieces, Karen Arcado (Dion), Jessica Kirby (Nick), and Andrea Rao (Shashanka); her nephews, Jeffrey Morse and Paul Miller Jr.; and her cousin, Daniel Flanigan. She was preceded in death by her parents.

A funeral mass will be held for Debbie on Saturday, February 14, 2026 at 1:00 PM at St. Mary's Catholic Church, 397 Fulton Street, Elgin, IL 60120. A celebration of her life will be held following the mass at 3:30 PM at The Hampton Social – South Barrington, in the Arboretum, 100 W. Higgins Road, South Barrington, IL 60010. In lieu of flowers, contributions in Debbie's memory may be made to The Association for Frontotemporal Degeneration (AFTD) at 2700 Horizon Drive, Suite 120, King of Prussia, PA 19406 (write "in memory of Debra Miller" in the memo line), or online at http://www.theaftd.org/. Donations can also be made by phone at 866-507-7222.

Debbie's kind spirit, generosity, and compassion touched the lives of many. She will be deeply missed by her family, many friends, and all who knew her.