Neal Tilford Milburn

On April 21st, Neal passed peacefully into the presence of Christ with some of his family nearby. All of the children and grandchildren had a chance to call or video call and tell their beloved father and grandfather 'goodbye for now'. We all have a sure confidence that Neal is in the presence of Jesus and reunited with his beloved wife, Marian.

Neal was born on October 23, 1927, on a farm in southern Illinois, where they lived with his grandparents, Myrtle and Melvin Pierce. He was the only son of Elmer T. and Lena Cloteel Milburn, with an older sister, Jen, and a younger sister, Sharon. In 1936, when Neal was 9, they settled more permanently in Charleston, IL, where he would spend the remainder of his childhood.

After finishing high school, Neal joined the Navy and served in Maryland and Washington DC as a Yeoman, after which he returned home and started to study at Eastern Illinois University. Eventually, he completed his Economics degree at Northwestern University in Evanston, IL. Rumor has it that during this time, he was quite the good dancer!!

He spent some years traveling as a CPA, until he fell in love with San Francisco and moved there, only to meet, and fall in love with the joy of his life, Marian. Two months after they met Neal proposed on New Years Eve, and they were married on August 8, 1958. They were together until 2018, when Marian preceded him in death, and we all smile to think that they are together again!

In 1963 they moved from California to Oregon, eventually settling at their home in Beaverton on Farmington Road, where they raised their family of four children. Dad worked in hospital administration at Physicians and Surgeons Hospital in Portland for the remainder of his career. He worked hard, with integrity and diligence, and taught his children the same. Family work days on our 2 acre 'mini-farm’ were a priority but he was not all about work. Equally a priority was time together, swimming, playing, beach trips, family vacations, and enjoying life.

They moved from Beaverton to Vancouver, WA in 1994, and then finally settled in Ephrata, WA in 2004. 'Grandma and Grandpa's House' was always a place of love and laughter for their grandchildren who remember 'Grandpa's Goodie Box', tickle fights, swimming for hours, snacking on big tins of popcorn and Lay's potato chips, watching Hallmark movies, and many games of Rummy and “99”.

They became involved in Community Church of Ephrata and loved and served their church family. Dad taught and modeled for us a life of faith and dedication to Christ. He made a decision to follow Jesus at age 11 and continued to walk with Him until the end of his life. He was deeply committed to God's word, to recognizing God's sovereignty in all things, and to constantly seeking to understand the things of the Lord more fully.

Neal is survived by his sister Sharon, his children Craig, Cathy, Cheryl, and Jessica, his 13 grandchildren, and 26 great grandchildren and 3 great great grandchildren! He is preceded in death by his wife Marian, his parents, sister Jen, granddaughter, and grandson. We will all miss dad deeply and celebrate in knowing that he is with his Lord and once again, enjoying time with mom and dancing the Jitterbug!

A Celebration of Life Service will be held on May 17th at 2pm at Community Church of Ephrata, located at 54 K St. SE, Ephrata, WA 98823.

If desired, in lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to:

The Community Church of Ephrata Missions: https://ccephrata.breezechms.com/give/online

or The Wounded Warrior Project: https://www.woundedwarriorproject.org/donate