Born November 22, 1926, to Archibald Alexander Hoover and Mary Ida Benfield Hoover, Sadie Pauline Hoover Mills was the ninth of ten children growing up on a farm near what is now Interstate 77 and Amity Hill Road. She lived almost all of her 99 years in Troutman, N.C., and peacefully passed away on the morning of February 17, 2026. She died in the home where she lived for over 75 years.
Pauline was a life-long member of Holy Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church in Troutman, where she taught Sunday School classes and groups of young people after school. She was honored in September 2024 as the oldest living member during Holy Trinity’s Centennial Anniversary Celebration. She loved her Lord and welcomed every opportunity to share God’s love with others. She dedicated her life, in word and deed, to living God’s will.
She graduated from Troutman High School in 1943, and worked at several jobs including J.J. Newberry’s, Troutman Shirt Mill and Pilch Farms. She was an excellent cook and baker, loved her vegetable gardens and planted geraniums and impatiens around her house every spring. She was a member of the American Legion Auxiliary, Post 401.
In September of 1946, she married Clayton Gardner Mills, who passed away in 2016. In addition to Clayton and her parents, all of Pauline’s siblings predeceased her. Her only brothers, Osborne and Voight Hoover, died in Europe during World War II. Her stepsisters were Lottie Smith, Willie Malcolm, and Hattie Hoover. Her sisters were Hazel Mills, Ruby Stewart, Virginia Jenkins, and Karee “Peg” Laws.
Family remaining to keep her memory alive include one son, Ricky Dale Mills and daughter-in-law, Linda; three granddaughters, Jenny Mills Bowers (Johnny), Mandy Mills Lattimore (Bucky) and Sarah Elaine Mills (Stephen Hyde). She had one great-grandson, Mason William Pennell, and two great-granddaughters, Audrey Laine Lattimore and Sadie Grace Lattimore. Also in the family is Mason’s father, Will Pennell. With so many siblings, Pauline had a large number of cherished nieces and nephews, great nieces and great nephews, as well as cousins.
Pauline once said the ministry God gave her was to remember the joys and sorrows of others by sending greeting cards, which were carefully chosen to represent her love. As her health declined, she in turn received many cards of encouragement and she felt blessed by each one. Thank you to all who remembered her in this was while she was living.
The family would like to express appreciation to the staff of Hospice and Palliative Care of Iredell County, as well as to her private caregivers, for the love and excellent care they freely offered her.
Visitation with the family and a celebration of life will be held Friday, February 20, 2026, at Holy Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, 225 Morgan Street, Troutman, N.C. The family will receive friends at 1 p.m. followed by the service at 2 p.m.. A graveside service will follow at Iredell Memorial Park, 2304 Shelton Avenue, Statesville, N.C. Services will be led by Pastor Dieter Punt.
Memorials may be made to Hospice and Palliative Care of Iredell County, 2347 Simonton Road, Statesville, NC 28625, or to Holy Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church, PO Box 308, Troutman, NC 28166, or to the charity of the donor’s choice.
Arrangements for Pauline are in the care of Troutman Funeral Home.