Ella Mary Margaret Mills (nee MacDonald), beloved matriarch of the Mills family, died peacefully in her sleep on June 24, 2012 in her eighty-sixth year surrounded by her loving family. Born to the late Esther and Duncan MacDonald on January 12, 1927 in Whitehead, Nova Scotia, she died as she had lived her life, with great dignity. She leaves behind a large and grieving family that includes her husband of over sixty-three years, Clifford, her children Don (Liz) Mills, Debbie (Ed Kline), Sharon (Phil Condran), David (Margo) Mills, Janet (Bob Webber), Jim (Leilany) Mills, and Jeff (Pam) Mills; and her thirteen grandchildren; Samantha Condran; Michael (Jennifer) and Lindsay (Sean Lewis); Kelsie Phillips, Candice (Kevin Saccary) and Cora Webber; Sara; Matthew, Alex, Amanda and Mallory; Curtis and Trent; and five great grandchildren including Shayne Condran, Liam and Lachlan Mills, Charlie Lewis and the newest one, Ella Saccary. She leaves behind her two sisters Betty Henderson (London, England) and Clara Jarvis (Whitehead, NS) and many nieces and nephews. She is predeceased by her two brothers John and Charlie MacDonald.

After living in Quebec for many years, she (and Cliff) returned to Nova Scotia with her family in the late sixties and lived in Truro for many happy years with a close circle of friends where she was an avid bridge player. Active in the community as a volunteer at her church and the local hospital, she was a member of the Catholic Women’s League for over 50 years. She will be remembered for her great personal strength and devotion to her family; and for the many large family gatherings centered around her tremendous cooking skills. At her request there will be no visitation, but a celebration of her life will take place at the Immaculate Conception Parish in Truro this Friday, June 29th,, beginning with a time to meet with family members at 1:00 PM , followed by the service at 2:00 PM and a reception. Special appreciation to the staff at Parkstone, especially to Dr. Deirdre Bergin, for their care and kindness. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Catholic Women’s League (www.cwl.ca) or a charity of your choice.