Sharon Lynn Miller, 48, of Oelwein passed away on Tuesday, August 29, 2017 at home.  A memorial open house will be held 5-8 p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 3 at the Geilenfeld Funeral Home in Oelwein. In lieu of flowers, the family has requested that memorials be made in Sharon’s honor to the new Buchanan County Animal Shelter in Hazelton, IA.

Sharon was born on July 19, 1969 in Oelwein, IA, the daughter of Charles and Dorothy (Van Gorder) Gosse. She grew up in Oelwein, graduated from Oelwein Senior High School in 1987 and attended Kirkwood Community College where she earned an AA degree as a Dental Assistant. Sharon and Aaron Roepke had one son, Andrew Gosse in 1987. She was married to Larry Koester on May 26, 1990. They later divorced. She married David Miller on June 23,1 995. They later divorced.

Sharon was a hard worker and made many friends at the numerous jobs she had over the years including Pizza Hut and K-mart in Oelwein, Norby’s Farm Fleet and Atwood in West Union, a dental office assistant in Platteville WI and most recently at Abraxis Bioscience in Oelwein, working there until the plant closed earlier this year. While living in Hazel Green, WI, Sharon fell in love with and began breeding and showing mastiff and rottweiler dogs, including her pride and joy, Jersey. She grew up riding the ponies grandpa gave her and bought her paint horse, Lady, at the salebarn in Waukon as a foal. She had Lady for over 25 years. She was a natural with handling and caring for her animals. But her biggest love was for her grandsons, Caiden and Taylor.

Left to celebrate Sharon’s life are her son, Andrew (Lindsey) Gosse of Davenport, IA and their children Caiden and Taylor; her sister Susan (Mark) Leibold of Fort Atkinson and their children Ethan and Alison; her brother Scott Gosse of Cedar Rapids, Iowa and his children Stephen (Elizabeth Downes) Gosse and son Ethan of Cedar Rapids, Iowa and Tiffany (Danny) Thomas of Richlands, NC and daughter Peyton; and her father, Charles Gosse of Oelwein, Iowa. She is preceded in death by her mother, Dorothy Gosse on Feb. 24, 2012 and grandparents Frank and Juanita Gosse and Elmer and Evelyn Van Gorder.