David W. Mills, 76, of Decatur, IN, passed away on Wednesday, January 28, 2026, at River Terrace Nursing Home in Bluffton. He was born in Fort Wayne, IN, on May 14, 1949, to the late Kenneth R. Mills and Margaret (Minnich) Briede. On December 10, 1994, he married Donna S. Light.
He graduated from St. Joseph Catholic School and then went on to Decatur High School. He was honorably discharged from the United States Marine Corps in September of 1974 obtaining the rank of Sergeant (E-5). Dave was stationed at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina. He then worked at Harvester until 1979.
For over 40 years he was the owner and operator of Mills Paint Shop, where he worked as a heavy equipment painter until his retirement in 2020. Dave was a member of the Moose Lodge 1311, American Legion Post 43, Knights of Columbus Council 864, VFW 6236, and Elks Lodge 796.
Dave enjoyed playing golf, traveling, cruises, drinking beer, and puzzles. He had many good times on Big Turkey Lake and loved being with his grandkids.
He is survived by his wife of 31 years, Donna Mills of Decatur; sons, Mark (Melanie) Mills, Jeff (Carla) Mills and Josh (Lisa) Mills all of Decatur; step son, Nicholas (Tasha) Braun of Ft. Wayne; 7 grandchildren, Boyd and Cain Mills, Colin (Carrington) Mills, Grace (Evan) Guilford, Emma, Katie and Ben Mills; 2 step grandchildren, Adalyn and Rylan Braun; great granddaughter, Avery Guilford; 2 sisters, Jenny Mills and Annie (Gary) Cook.; Donna’s surviving family members, 3 sisters-in-law, Sandy (Pete) Adams, Deb Schevenius and Brenda (Dean Cornett) Light; brothers-in-law, Eric (Carolyn) Light and Greg (Dee Dee Jauregui) Light.
Dave was preceded in death by 2 brothers, Tom and Larry Mills, sister-in-law, Beth Mills; father and mother-in-law, Gerald and Winona Light.
Visitation will be from on 2:00 – 7:00 p.m., on Monday, February 2, 2026 at Haggard-Hirschy & Zelt Funeral Home. Casual attire is requested.
A Funeral Service will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Tuesday, February 3, 2026, also at the Funeral Home, with visitation 1 hour prior from 10:00 – 11:00 a.m. Pastor John McCullough will be officiating.
Burial will follow in Decatur Cemetery and Military Graveside Rites will be rendered by the American Legion Adams Post 43 Color Guard.
Preferred memorials may be made to the ACCF Angel Alzheimer’s Fund.
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