Millicent McNeill OAM was a devoted mother and grandmother, a loving and supportive wife, and an asset to the local community in Greater Shepparton, where she was a teacher and also dedicated years of voluntary service to several clubs, schools and organisations.

Born Millicent Anne Stewart to parents Crawford and Leila Stewart in Shepparton on July 13, 1942, she was the youngest sibling to Patricia, 13, and John, 11.

As a child, Millicent enjoyed many trips to Melbourne and summer holidays to Queenscliff and Point Lonsdale with her family.

She attended Fryers Street Primary School until Year 5, before transferring to Gowrie Street Primary School when it first opened for her final primary school year.

Millicent’s family recalls her detailing how she carefully crossed Wyndham St, from her Orr St home, and then rode through tomato paddocks on her bike to get to the new school.

After her secondary education at Shepparton High School, from where her big brother John would take her home on the back of his motorbike and also where she later taught, she began working in accounts at her parents’ store, Stewarts Hardware.

When she was 16, Millicent and local lad Bruce McNeill started courting.

Together the pair enjoyed attending balls and dances around the Goulburn Valley.

They were married on the day Melbourne defeated Collingwood in the VFL grand final in September 1964, at Shepparton’s Methodist church in Maude St, followed by a dry reception at the Victoria Hotel.

The newlyweds honeymooned on the Gold Coast, before Millicent moved 591 metres to the Maude St home Bruce had built with his father, John McNeill, where she lived for the next 54 years.

While Bruce grew his trailer manufacturing and crane hire business, Millicent ran the family’s household and cared dutifully for her father-in-law for 29 years.

Millicent and Bruce took a once-in-a-lifetime trip to Perth along a 1200km stretch of dirt road with Millicent’s parents in 1966, before starting their own family in August, 1968, when their first child, Christopher, was born.

Sadly, Millicent suffered a heartbreaking loss when her mother passed away in 1971.

In 1972, Millicent and Bruce’s second child, Jane, was born, completing their family along with their pet Labrador Nero.

Together they would spend Sundays picknicking in their favourite nearby places in the Strathbogie Ranges and the Whroo State Forest.

As the kids grew, so too did Bruce’s business, for which Millicent performed the bookwork and took care of accounts.

The couple soon began devoting more time to community service.

Millicent returned to her childhood roots, where she had become a Girl Guide in 1953 when she was 11.

She became a leader and lieutenant in the movement until 1968 before joining the Local Association of the Girl Guides as a committee member, becoming vice president and then president, as well as convenor of its major annual fundraiser, the annual Gown of the Year fashion parade.

While still caring for her ageing father-in-law, John, Millicent stayed heavily involved in her children’s school and sporting lives, joining the fundraising committee at Wesley Kindergarten, coaching swimming and volunteering at Bourchier Street Primary School’s canteen, co-ordinating transport of the school’s ‘Bourchier Street Blacks’ football team, as well as helping wherever she could during Jane’s stint with the Goulburn Valley Gymnastics Association.

She also put on the most memorable themed birthday parties for Chris and Jane, which became very popular among her children’s groups of friends.

In 1982, heartbreak visited Millicent again when her brother, John, whom she regularly caught up with over cuppas at the hardware store he’d taken over from their parents, was tragically killed in an accident.

That same year, the family began their association with Goulburn Valley Grammar School, with Chris enrolled and Jane following later.

Millicient helped wherever she could, in particular, by co-ordinating the school’s fete for several years.

In 1988, she joined Shepparton’s Red Cross branch, racking up several contributions throughout the years.

She was branch delegate from 1988 until 2003; branch chairperson and publicity officer from 1988 and treasurer until her recent passing; zone deputy chairperson from 2013 to 2014 and again from 2022 to 2026; zone chairperson from 2015 to 2016; Victorian Divisional Advisory Board member from 2001 to 2014; and chairperson of that board in 2011.

As a volunteer, Millicent served with the emergency services catering team from 1990 to 2017, and as an emergency services deputy divisional officer from 1990 to 2015.

While Millicent was never directly involved with local government, her father, Crawford, and husband, Bruce, both held terms as the mayor of the City of Shepparton.

Millicent loved attending functions, ribbon cuttings and promoting her city during her unofficial role of ‘mayoress’.

Bruce and Millicent travelled extensively through outback Australia, not seeing much of a need to head abroad with so much to see on home soil, but eventually travelled internationally in 2000 for a month to Scotland, where there is significant family history, and Singapore.

In 2003, Millicent proudly became a grandmother to Chris’ daughter Alice.

A year later, a second grandchild arrived when Jane had a son named Xan, and again the year after when Chris had a son named Angus.

Millicent’s family remembers her as a traditional, adoring and devoted ‘Nanny’.

They say there was nothing she wouldn’t do to help her family, returning to school drop-offs and pick-ups when Jane and Xan moved back into the family home in 2006.

Sadly, in 2016, Bruce was diagnosed with aggressive dementia.

He and Millicent travelled as much as they could until his condition deteriorated and they returned home where she cared for him as long as she possibly could before there was no choice but to admit him to permanent care at a dementia facility.

Bruce sadly passed in 2018, after a happy 54-year marriage to Millicent.

After his passing, almost eight years ago, Millicent remained active in the Red Cross, enjoyed spending time with her friends and watched proudly as her grandchildren transformed into adults.

She continued travelling with friends, taking in Norfolk and Kangaroo islands, and New Zealand.

In the past few years, Millicent survived a severe sepsis attack and a serious car accident, which reduced her mobility and affected her hearing.

Late last year, she suffered another sepsis attack and spent a month in hospital, with a road of rehabilitation afterwards.

She did, however, continue to find joy in her family, close friends and animals (dogs, cats and a turtle) to the very end.

Her family says that in a different era, Millicent could have become a highly successful businesswoman with her exceptional planning, organisational and implementation skillset, but instead channelled her heart, soul and energy into her family and serving her community.

She was decorated with several awards throughout her life, including a Red Cross service award, a Red Cross distinguished service award, honorary life membership of the Australian Red Cross, a Red Cross 30-year long service award, a Rotary Paul Harris Fellowship award, a Sheparton Club outstanding achiever award, a Centenary Medal and an Order of Australia medal.

But above everything else, Millicent’s pride and joy was her family.

She passed away peacefully at home on Monday, July 6, aged 83.

A memorial service was held for Millicent at The Woolshed at Emerald Bank on Thursday, July 16.

Vale Millicent McNeill, and thank you for your service.

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Wednesday, 15th March 2028

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