Ronnie Mills, Jr., 48, of Early

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Ronnie Mills Jr., 48, of Early went to Heaven on Wednesday, March 3, 2021 following an epic 4-year battle with a rare and aggressive cancer.  To his very last breath he was the fighter everyone knew him as for all his life. His last days he spent reminding all his loved ones that “Jesus Christ is Lord.” Even when he couldn’t speak, he would point his finger to heaven as a symbol of his faith.

A Memorial Service will be held at 4:00 PM, Sunday, March 14, 2021 at Early First Baptist Church.

Ronnie was born May 20, 1972 in Brownwood, Texas to Ronald and Brenda Mills.  He attended Brownwood High School and went on to get an Associates in networking from TSTC and a Bachelor’s in Business Administration from Tarleton University. He achieved his MBA in 2012, and went on to become an International Sales Manager at Apple, Inc.  where he was passionate about inspiring and developing people’s unique talents to be the best they could be.  He equally loved leading the amazing team at Echo Wireless, where he worked tirelessly to improve all aspects of the company.  He was instrumental in continual upgrades, he worked nights, weekends and all sorts of weather to resolve outages.  He even climbed towers with his chemo bag still attached!  Even in his final days, he would work at home and by phone to help where he could.

Ronnie attended church at Early First Baptist where he became close with Pastor Eddie Ailshie and fellow members of the AWOL Sunday school class.  He also attended Wednesday services with Pastors Jason and Jodie Studdard and Pastor Dawn Smith at Heartland Church.  He loved the teachings of Pastor Duane Sheriff and would frequently travel to hear his meetings.

Ronnie lived life to the fullest.  His varied interests were disc golf, poker, jumping off the rocks at Kirklands, bike riding, camping, grilling & barbecuing, kayaking, hunting, traveling, photography, entertaining, attending live music events, all things technology, playing cards and dominoes, watching movies – especially superhero flicks – and having new experiences.  He was adventurous in all areas of life.

Ronnie was active in the recovery community across Texas and celebrated 5 years of continuous sobriety on February 1, 2021.

Ronnie is survived by his wife of 25 years, Brandy Bee Mills of Brownwood; daughters, Torii Crooks and husband Chazz of Brownwood and Journey Mae Mills of Early; sons, Rhino Rae Mills of Brownwood and Michael Roman Mills of Early; father, Ronnie Mills Sr.; brothers, Mike Mills of San Antonio, James Miller of Brownwood, and Johnny Mays of Andrews; 2 grandchildren, Simon Carruth and Zephyr Crooks; and many, many lifelong friends.

Ronnie was preceded in death by his mother Brenda; grandmother, Georgia McKelvain Mills; and cousins, John and Manny Fulton.

In lieu of flowers the family has requested contributions to a memorial garden by contacting Brandy Bee Mills on Facebook.  A benefit account is open at Texas Bank for financial contributions to his memorials.

Online condolences, tributes and memorials can be shared with the family at www.heartlandfuneralhome.net