Fleurette Guilloz Of Southampton Dies October 15

Fleurette Guilloz of Southampton died on October 15 at Stony Brook Southampton Hospital. She was 103.

She was born in Southampton to Camille and Charles Guilloz on September 30, 1917.

Ms. Guilloz was very athletic, doing 220 pull ups when she was in high school. She was very disciplined, walking 6 miles per day, eating properly, especially having a piece of dark chocolate in the afternoon. Her favorite color was blue and she chose a blue dress when in 1933 she married Wilbur “Pete” Miller. In 1934, she gave birth to a daughter, Jacqueline.

She grew up in a family devoted to gardening. Her father, a professional horticulturist, was educated in France and Germany and spoke seven languages. After emigrating to the United States, he oversaw horticulture on large estates in West Chester and later the East End. He played the violin in a Southampton band performing in Agawam Park and for weddings and parties. Ms. Guilloz’s father developed a species of hydrangea that Henry F. DuPont admired and used on his estate in Southampton and later included in the gardens at Winterthur, near Wilmington, Delaware.

After the death of Ms. Guilloz’s father, her mother took over the gardening business and eventually, Ms. Guilloz enthusiastically carried it into her generation. Through the years, she had many jobs. She was the first woman who was hired by the Bulova Watch Co. in Sag Harbor, doing very intricate work on the watches. But at the age of 40, she finally was doing what she loved best. For the next 50-plus years, she grew and sold flowers to all who came to her gardens.

Everyone knew Ms. Guilloz, her family said, noting that she was a kind and generous person who always was ready to mentor to both men and women who chose gardening as their profession.

She taught and worked with Rene Rojas, a young man from Mexico, and he has continued to take care of her gardens for the past 20 years. A quote from Audrey Hepburn is, “To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow.” Fleurette was strong and always had faith and hope for the future, her family said.

She was a member of First Presbyterian Church of Southampton and sang in the choir for many years. She was also active in the community, holding workshops for the Southampton Garden Club, speaking at the Rogers Memorial Library, planting geraniums in the village flower boxes, creating flower arrangement for events at the Parrish Art Museum, parties, estates, the Meadow Club and the Shinnecock Golf Club. She also hosted many tours on her property, having been the first person to grow sunflowers in the area. Ms. Guilloz was featured in many books and publications and every September she would plan a trip, having traveled to Hawaii, Europe and many of the states during the years. In 2012, she published a family memoir, “Son Jardin” a reminiscence of her life in her garden of Son Jardin.

Ms. Guilloz loved to entertain and was an excellent cook, her family said, baking bread, making wine and always trying new recipes. She chopped her own wood, did all the planting and was ready for a party. Her personality attracted many friends from all walks of life, they noted.

When Ms. Guilloz turned 100, one of her presents included a Proclamation from the Town Of Southampton designating September 30 as “Fleurette Guilloz Day.” Her family is thankful for the care she has received through the years especially from Gloria Smith and Lila Yeboah, they said. Many others have also contributed to her care bringing food, flowers and friendship.

Ms. Guilloz will always be remembered for her generous spirit, loving her family, friends, and her work, her family said, noting that she always strove to be her best. “I’ve had a happy life,” she said, according to her family. “I’ve met wonderful people and have wonderful friends and family. I couldn’t ask for anything more.”

Ms. Guilloz was predeceased by her parents; her brothers, Henry and wife Dimara, Charles and wife Pauline, Wilbur Miller; her first husband and her second husband, Nils Olson. After Nils’s death, she legally took back her maiden name for business purposes. In 1953, Jackie Miller married Douglas Maxwell and had three children, Cathy, Doug and Davie.

She is survived by Jackie, of Vancouver, Washington; Cathy and her husband, Phillip, of Lynnwood, Washington, and her children Elizabeth Alm of Seattle and Zachary Alm. Doug and his wife Betty of Diamondhead, Mississippi and son Jason of Chattanooga, Tennessee; Davie and Terri of Vancouver, Washington and son Jeffrey and his family of Ridgefield, Washington. She is also survived by her nephew Chuck Guilloz and his wife Debbie and their son Charles, Nicole Cassidy and their daughter Camille and Ms. Guilloz’s great-nephew Gregory of Southampton. She is also survived by her nephew Gerard “Jed” and his wife Cheryl of Uniontown, Ohio and their daughter, Brooke and her husband Todd Theriot of Castle Rock, Colorado.

Memorial donations may be made to Heart of the Hamptons, Peconic Land Trust and First Presbyterian Church.

Arrangements were entrusted to Brockett Funeral Home, Inc. In Southampton.