Mildred (Millie) Jean Brenner Friesen was born on the family farm outside of Woodbine, KS on June 15, 1925 to William and Lillian Tiemann Brenner. Along with her older brother, Warren, Millie attended a Dickinson County district # 1 rural school north of town through the 8th grade. In 1942 Millie graduated from Woodbine High School as valedictorian of her class.
Possessing a sensitive heart to spiritual things, Millie came to faith in Jesus as a young girl and participated faithfully with her family in the life of Mt. Zion Baptist Church. The Lord gave Millie a wonderful gift for music and she developed into a very skilled pianist. At the age of 13, Millie won 2nd place in a statewide piano competition for 13 through 19-year-olds. One day when the Tabor College Choir under the direction of Herbert C. Richert sang at a nearby church, Millie was so deeply moved that she decided to attend Tabor where she enrolled in the fall of 1942.
At Tabor Millie immersed herself in music, singing and playing the piano for various musical groups. She also caught the eye of a young Nebraskan, Harry Friesen, who courted her and then proposed to her on the same day that Harry’s older brother Lee proposed to his wife-to-be, Martha. During Millie’s three years at Tabor, she earned a two-year Associate of Arts degree and then enrolled in more Bible classes during her third year. After Harry’s graduation, they were married at the First Baptist Church in Durham, KS on June 1, 1945.
In the fall of 1945 Millie and Harry moved to Dallas, TX where Harry began studies at Dallas Theological Seminary, while Millie served as secretary for the seminary’s business manager, Dr. C. Fred Lincoln. During those years, the Lord called both Harry and Millie into full-time missionary service. Daughter, Marilyn Jean, was born in August of 1948. After Harry graduated in 1949, he and Millie applied with the Mennonite Brethren foreign mission board and were assigned to service in postwar Japan. To prepare for missionary work, Millie and Harry served in a one-year pastorate in Scotts Bluff, NE from 1949 to 1950. After son, Stephen Samuel was born in September 1950, Millie, Marilyn, and he joined Harry in Berkeley, CA for an intensive four-month Japanese language study course in the fall of 1950.
In March of 1951 Millie and Harry set sail for Japan where they raised their family and faithfully served the Lord for 42 years in in the Osaka area. Millie gave herself to diligently nurturing and caring for her children. Second son, Billy, was born in Osaka in December of 1951, but died shortly after birth, adding to the sorrow of Millie’s loss of her father, William, who went to be with the Lord in July of that year. Daughters, Grace Ann and Joyce Elizabeth were born in Japan in 1953 and 1954. Son, Philip James was born on a furlough in Kansas in 1957, and daughter, Deborah Lea, was born back in Japan in 1960.
As missionaries, Millie and Harry were a wonderful team. They served together in church planting, seminary teaching, and university student evangelism. Along the way, Millie also taught piano and organ lessons to pastor’s wives, discipled countless young ladies, and used her cooking skills to reach neighborhood women for Christ. In one of her favorite ministries, Millie invested her time and piano skills over the course of many decades in the Osaka Women’s Luncheon outreach, where she accompanied the women’s chorus in the twice-a-year elegant gospel outreach event that was attended by thousands.
After retiring to Kansas in 1992, Millie and Harry enjoyed life and gardening in their country home near Marion Reservoir. Their roomy house had plenty of space for hosting fun family gatherings. Millie and Harry also took time to travel and visit their children and grandchildren. They plugged into serving and fellowshipping at Parkview MB Church, and loved attending Tabor College sporting events to watch their grandkids play. Millie used her gift of hospitality to host Tabor College students for dinners, mentoring sessions, and Bible studies. She also participated in women’s ministry and the MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) Program at Parkview Church.
After Harry’s passing in 2009 following 63 years of marriage, Millie eventually moved into Parkside Homes, where she savored life in her duplex for five years. In 2017 she entered her skilled nursing unit room at Parkside for six additional years. Millie was loved by her caregivers, and was known for her kindness and sweetness, as well as her prayers for them, often verbalized quite loudly in the middle of the night. She was relatively healthy and mobile until the day she died.
Millie passed peacefully into the presence of her Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ, at the age of 97 in the early morning hours of Thursday, January 26, 2023. She is survived by her six children and their spouses: Marilyn and Ken Fast of Hillsboro, KS; Steve and Bobbie Friesen of Newton, KS; Grace and Eldon Steele of Tyler, TX; Joyce and Jim Herrington of Tyler, TX; Phil and Susan Friesen of Ashburn, VA; and Debbie and Bill Phillips of Rowlett, TX. Millie also is survived by 16 grandchildren, 27 great grandchildren, cousin Bettie Batt of Marion, KS, brother-in-law, Dwaine Friesen of Fairbury, NE, and many nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by her parents, her half-brother, Paul Brenner; brother, Warren Brenner; her husband, Harry; son, Billy; grandson Ryan Steele; and great grandson, Gabe Friesen.
Millie’s Memorial service will be held on Saturday, February 18, 2023 at Parkview MB Church in Hillsboro, KS at 11:00 am, following a graveside service at 10:00 am at Marion Cemetery.
A Memorial Fund has been designated to Multiply (formerly Mennonite Brethren Missions/Services) for ministry in Japan. Memorial gifts may be made out to “Multiply” with “Millie Friesen memorial” in the memo line and sent in care of: Jost Funeral Home, PO Box 266, Hillsboro, KS 67063.