Mildred M. Seger, age 104, of Columbia, Missouri, formerly of Liberty and Quincy, Illinois, died on Wednesday, May 6, 2026, in Columbia. She was born June 1, 1921, near Aledo, Illinois, the daughter of Clarence and Ella (Agan) Davis. She married John A. Seger in 1948, and he preceded her in death on February 15, 1982.

Mildred grew up in the Depression in rural northeastern Illinois. Farm life in that era was hard, and from a young age, she found an escape through books. She loved to read and developed an early interest in teaching. She was the first of her immediate family to attend college, earning a bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Western Illinois University in Macomb (then Western Illinois State Teachers College) and achieving membership in Kappa Delta Pi, the teachers’ honor society for academic and professional excellence. She graduated on June 3, 1948, and that same day, she married her fiancé John and soon began a teaching career which took her to classrooms throughout Illinois. Her first job was in a one-room schoolhouse with only eight students, but over her career, she taught in a wide variety of public schools in Mercer County, Savanna, Rockford, and finally, in Liberty, Illinois, when John became Superintendent of the Liberty Community Unit School District #2 in 1967. She retired from teaching fifth grade there in 1981. John and Mildred were enthusiastic teachers to their own children, too. The family spent many summers traveling in their station wagon to national parks, big cities, and historic sites with their own ‘classroom’ of four. For the Seger kids, every vacation was like a school field trip!

The couple purchased the Liberty Bee-Times newspaper in Liberty when John retired from the school district 1976, and he published it until his death in 1982. Mildred then continued publishing the paper on her own until 1984, when she sold it to Jim and Marcia Elliott and moved to Quincy, Illinois.

Despite being widowed too soon, Mildred enjoyed an active retirement. She travelled often in the contiguous United States, and made trips to Europe, Great Britain, Guatemala, and Hawaii, visiting relatives or joining tour groups. She volunteered in Quincy for many years as a literacy tutor for John Wood Community College and as a mentor in public schools. In 2010 she was honored for 20 years of service to the Retired Senior Volunteer Program. In her sixties, she rekindled her long-held interest in watercolor painting and became a charter member of the Great River Watercolor Society, frequently exhibiting and selling her artwork. She became known as a ‘house painter’ because many of her friends and acquaintances over the years commissioned her to paint watercolor interpretations of their homes. She was a longtime member of Pleasant Grove United Methodist Church in Liberty and was active in the United Methodist Women’s Society, attending several state and national conferences as a representative. Mildred also remained close to her extended family throughout her life and took great delight in reunions with her siblings and cousins, discussing family memories and researching genealogy.

Mildred is survived by her four children: Mary Seger of St. Charles, Missouri; John T. Seger (Silvia) of Stafford, Virginia; Edward Seger of Cary, Illinois; and Elaine Stewart (David) of Columbia, Missouri. Mildred has six grandchildren: Tom Ruebusch (Natalie), John Alexander Seger (Heidi), Stephanie Seger (Dan Mize), Virginia Seger (Reaves McElveen), Andrew Daak and Anna Seger. Great-grandchildren include: John Alexander Seger, Jr.; Sofia Seger; Elijah Seger-Mize, Matilda Seger-Mize; Andrew Ruebusch, Eleanor Ruebusch; and Joaquin Seger-McElveen.

Mildred outlived the generation of people who defined her life, including her husband, two sisters, Bethel and Hazel, her brother, Paul, and many cousins, in-laws, friends, and acquaintances. While her extreme age brought unique challenges, she navigated her last years with complacent dignity and was loved and enjoyed by all who knew her, including many kind caregivers from Home Instead, Colony Pointe Assisted Living, and Lenoir Woods Skilled Nursing in Columbia, Missouri.

A memorial service will be held at the Duker & Haugh Funeral Home in Quincy, Illinois, on Saturday, May 9, 2026, with a visitation at 11:00 a.m. followed by a funeral service at 12:00 noon. Memorials may be made to Pleasant Grove United Methodist Church in Liberty, Illinois, and Chaddock Children’s Foundation in Quincy. Service arrangements are with the Duker and Haugh Funeral Home.