Deborah G. Miller, 51, of Bluffton, passed away at 10:47 p.m. Thursday, January 12, 2012, at Lutheran Hospital in Fort Wayne. Mrs. Miller was born in Indianapolis on December 5, 1960, to George R. and Doris E. (Frost) Akers. She married Terry L. Miller in New Castle on Sept. 24, 1983; he survives. A 1979 graduate of Walter P. Chrysler Memorial High School, Mrs. Miller earned a B.S. in science from Ball State University in 1983. She worked for Frontier Communications in Fort Wayne and, from 1999 to 2010, served on the Northern Wells School Board. She attended Calvary Lutheran Church in Bluffton. Family was a very important part of her life and she was a "mother figure" to many. She was full of laughter, and loved reading, travelling with her family, and the beach. She always put others first. Other surviving relatives include her father, of Belleview, Fla.; her mother, of New Castle; two daughters, Allison (Eric) Burgeson of Connersville and Melissa Miller of Bluffton; and one brother, Kevin D. Akers of New Castle. Calling hours will be from 3 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, January 18, at Goodwin Memorial Chapel in Bluffton. A memorial service will be at 7 p.m. Wednesday, at the funeral home, with John Reinhard officiating. Burial will be at a later date. Preferred memorials are to the Northern Wells Dollars For Scholars, 1100 East U.S. 224, Ossian.