Doris E. (Hipple) Milligan

Of Forest Hills joined the church triumphant on September 18, 2016. She was a member of Beulah Church and an ordained elder in the Presbyterian Church (USA). Born Doris Eileen Hipple in 1926, she grew up in Waukegan, IL, and attended Monmouth College where she earned her BA degree. At Monmouth she met and married Dale K. Milligan. They began their life together in Pittsburgh, PA where Dale attended seminary and Doris taught elementary school. She became an integral part of his ministry as Dale developed the Youth Club/LOGOS program for church youth, serving churches in PA and Oklahoma.  The two traveled extensively throughout the United States and beyond, training church leaders to establish LOGOS programs of their own.  Throughout their ministry, Doris and Dale worked together to help churchgoers of all ages to grow in faith and in relationship to God and Jesus Christ in their lives. Doris's legacy lies in her sharing of her gifts in music and drama in every church she touched. She directed youth choirs and spring musicals, dramatic presentations and liturgical readings to make sure every child was included in leading worship. Many will remember her staging of the Lord's Supper, Man Born to be King, Christmas pageants and Our Town. She and Dale performed duets together, like Laurey and Curly from Oklahoma! and Maria and the Captain in The Sound of Music. Through these experiences, she won the hearts of children and left an indelible impression on each person she taught, instilling in him or her not only a love of the arts, but also a sense of service and "giving back" to God. Somehow in the midst of all these activities, Doris found the time to continue her education at Central State University to complete her Master’s Degree in Special Education. She had a gift for working with special needs students who responded to her kind, maternal nature. Her studies gave her further insight into working with children through her ministry, and she was well known for her 'Dear Doris' column in the LOGOS newsletter. One of her specialties was the teaching of loving discipline within the LOGOS program, offering advice and problem solving for leaders from all over the country as to how to deal with troubled youth or other issues they were encountering with their own ministries. Everyone who knew Doris was struck by her bright, positive outlook, sharp wit, contagious humor, gentle strength, and her kind and her nurturing spirit. She raised four daughters with a loving hand and was a delight to her grandchildren and great grandchildren. She is survived by daughters, Deborah (Scott) Freeman, Kathleen Milligan, Laurie Milligan, and Rebecca (Michael) Little; grandchildren, Rebekah (Reed) Rawhouser, Jonathan Dale Freeman and Tyler, Megan, Abbey, and Emma Little; and great- grandchildren, Evangeline, Cainan, and Paxton Rawhouser. A memorial service will be held on Friday, September 23, 2016, at 2:00 p.m. at the Beulah Presbyterian Church, 2500 McCrady Road, Pittsburgh, with the Rev. Dr. Cynthia Reyes Fillmore officiating. The family will receive friends at the church following the service. Memorial contributions may be made to Beulah Presbyterian Church. Arrangements by WOLFE MEMORIAL, INC., FOREST HILLS CHAPEL, 412-731-5001.