On May 18, 2022, Janet Erlene Miller of Green Valley, AZ, passed away at an all-most age of 91 years.
Janet was born July 22, 1931, to Bry and Bessie Miller in Carbon County, Utah. Growing up in the small town of Spring Glen, Utah, Janet developed a love for horses and riding, which stayed with her throughout her life. Riding her stallion Pete, she often spent time herding cattle in Nine Mile and spending summers with friends, riding up to the family homestead in Argyle Canyon. A memorable affair was riding Pete as Rodeo Queen in a local event.
She attended Carbon High School, where she met her future husband Happy Ray Plaga. The marriage produced two beautiful daughters, Tamra Rae and Sherry Ann. Sometime later, the family relocated to Lancaster, CA. While in Lancaster, Janet found work at the G.E. facility, Edwards Air Force Base, which was involved in testing newly developed jet engines and experimental airframes, which she claimed was a most exciting time of her life.
Sometime after her divorce from Happy, she met and married Peter Manley in 1976. Along with Peter, she acquired two more daughters, Kerri and Kasey, and a son Kurt. Janet and Peter both worked at Northrop Aerospace in Hawthorne, CA. In 1992, Janet and Peter began a new journey as full-time RVer’s as members of the Escapees RV Club, which lasted a very enjoyable and exciting 12 years. They visited many of the 48 continental states, sampling their golf courses and many wineries before settling down in a “stick-house” in Green Valley, AZ in 2004.
In the latter part of 2018, Janet decided that it was time to make a change. She and Peter moved to the Peaks at Santa Rita retirement facility but after a year moved again (she thought there were too many old folks there) into a duplex with a great view of the Santa Rita Mountains, where she and her husband lived until her passing. Janet is survived by her spouse, four daughters, a son, seven grandkids and seven (so far) great-grandkids.