Obit – H.E. (Bud) Butler
H.E. (Bud) Butler passed peacefully at his “House on the Hill” in Brentwood, TN on Tuesday morning, January 17, 2023. He was 91. He was pronounced deceased at 8:20 a.m. by Alive Hospice of Gallatin who had assisted the family with his care during his final days.
Mr. Butler was at the Carthage Chapel of Sanderson Funeral Home where his funeral services were conducted Monday afternoon, January 23, 2023, by the Rev. Don Morris. Burial followed the 1 p.m. services beside his wife and son in section two at the Ridgewood Cemetery.
He was born Huber Edward Butler II in Nashville on January 17, 1931 to Huber Edward Butler, who died August 7, 1994 at the age of 88, and Anna Lee Dalton Butler, who died July 30, 1997 at the age of 91, and was reared on Fisher Avenue in Carthage.
His father, Huber Sr., was a longtime barber and owned Fuqua-Butler Barber Shop which was located in Old Carthage between Murrah Drug Co. and the Waggoner and Maggart Department Store.
Buddy played basketball and football all four years at S.C.H.S. during high school, was a member of the Beta Club and was president his senior year, was class President his freshman, sophomore and junior years and also was a member of the “C” club all four years and was a member of the Latin Club his freshman and sophomore years, was co-captain of both the basketball and football teams his senior year. Also his senior year he was voted the “Best Boy Citizen”. He graduated from Smith County High School in 1949 which graduated fifty three class members.
Interested in continuing his education, he attended the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, where he played football during the University’s first national championship.
He transferred to Tennessee Polytechnic Institute, now (Tennessee Technological University) to finish his degree in Business Administration. While at TTU he joined the Army’s ROTC program. Upon his graduation in 1953 as a 2nd Lt., he received orders to report to Ft. Hood, Texas to begin training in the Army Signal Corp.
Huber married his high school sweetheart, Granville native Patsy Williamson, after she informed him she wanted to get married by sending him an invitation to their own wedding. He cleared it with his commanding officer, and they were married on March 27, 1954, at the Carthage United Methodist Church. Patsy followed him to Ft. Hood to start her nursing career.
He was honorably discharged from the United States Army with the rank of 1st Lieutenant at Fort Hood, on May 29, 1955 and for his service he was awarded the Nation Defense Service Medal.
Bud took a job with the Associates Finance Corporation in Atlanta. This company took him all around the country for stops in Knoxville, TN where they started their family with two boys. They then moved to Dallas, TX, Hollywood, CA, and then to South Bend, IN where they had their son, Mathew, who was born with special needs. They moved to Chicago and then finally back to Tennessee where he bought the “House on the Hill” for his bride in Brentwood, TN.
Bud and Patsy dedicated much of their lives to improving the lives of people with special needs. Through their work with the ARC – where Bud was the national treasurer for a time – to being a founder of Mid-Tenn Living, playing an integral part in forming the main streaming program for Davidson County School System, and founding the Mathew Butler Foundation, the pair left an indelible mark on increasing the opportunities for people with intellectual challenges and special needs.
Additionally, their blood ran orange. They were University of Tennessee season ticket holders for decades and followed their beloved Vols all over the country. They loved to travel, watch the birds and wildlife outside their window, supporting and spending time with their sons and grandsons.
Mr. H.E. (Bud) Butler, who was the ROCK of the Butler family, is preceded in death by his beloved wife of 66-years, Patsy Williamson Butler, who died September 9, 2020 at the age of 88; their son, Mathew Williamson Butler, who died October 13, 1994 at the age of 27, and a brother Lewis Butler.
Surviving are his sons W.B. (Bart) Butler and wife, Debbie; Huber Edward Butler III and wife, Melissa, and grandsons who knew him as Poppi or Pappoh; Spencer Butler and spouse, Daemyen, Jozef D. Butler and Maxwell T. Butler.
SANDERSON of CARTHAGE
