Calvin "Bud" H. Butts Obituary (1932 - 2018)

Calvin H. "Bud" Butts, 86, of Baker City, died Sept 22, 2018, with family by his side. A public memorial service will be held at Grays West & Co. Pioneer Chapel at 2 PM on Saturday, October 13th, 2018, with Pastor Lennie Spooner of the First Church of the Nazarene officiating. Inurnment at Mt. Hope Cemetery will directly follow the service. Bud was born on April 19th, 1932 at Jim Town (near Halfway) Oregon to Dorothy (Beach) and Sanford Butts. Bud attended grade school in Wingville, and like many local ranch kids during the depression, rode a plow horse to school often. At the outbreak of WW2, the Butts family moved to the Oregon Coast to run a dairy in support of the war effort. Bud attended the Catholic High School in Tillamook, Oregon before joining the Air Force and serving as a crew chief based out Tokyo, Japan during the Korean War. Following his service in the Air Force, Bud soon moved his young family to Portland, Oregon where he worked for Borden's Inc. for 30 years. Bud enjoyed many hobbies as a young man and enjoyed sharing his passion for motorcycles, camping, hunting, fishing, woodworking, and history with his four children and numerous nieces and nephews. Bud retired to Baker City in the early 1990s and volunteered extensively at the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center serving as a storyteller dressed in his signature buckskins and full mountain man regalia. Bud is survived by his brother Charles Skelton of Prineville, his daughters Marcia Blaine of Portland, Debbie Dethloff of Vancouver, WA., his sons Gregory Bowman of Beaverton, and Daniel Koopman of Baker City, 12 grandchildren, 4 great-grandchildren, and numerous nieces and nephews who have cherished memories of "Uncle Bud" and the family gatherings from their childhood. He was preceded in death by his parents, his brother George Skelton, his sister Wilma Olivera, and his wife, Sharon (Palmer) Butts. The family would like to express a special thank you to the doctors, nurses, and staff at St. Alphonsus, Baker City for the tenderness they provided Bud during his recent stay. Memorial contributions in memory of Bud can be made to the Interpretive Center Trail Tenders, Inc. through Gray's West & Co. Pioneer Chapel at 1500 Dewey Avenue, Baker City, OR 97814.