Celeste died in Whitman County Hospital in Colfax, Washington. She is survived by her son Kevin Mills; daughter-in-law, Janet Mills; and her grandchildren, Sarah and David Mills. She was preceded in death by her husband, Lester Harrison Mills; and her son Chris Maurice Mills.
Celeste grew up in the town of Milton-Freewater, Ore., as the adopted daughter of Maurice and Harriet Frazier. She often told the family stories of spending many a summer’s days as a child in the Walla Walla River. Later in high school, she drove a truck during harvest for her father’s farm.
Celeste graduated from McLaughlin High School in Milton-Freewater. She became a telephone operator and worked in Walla Walla, Wash., and later worked as the main switchboard operator for the Marcus Whitman Hotel in Walla Walla. Wanting a more adventuresome life, she left Oregon and go to California where she worked as a switchboard operator for the famous Del Coronado Hotel on Del Coronado Island. Celeste’s job provided her with interesting stories about dignitaries and people in high society that would visit the hotel.
Read the full obituary at the Whitman County Gazette
