HERBERT WILLIAM BUTLER

Herbert Butler

Herbert William Butler, 93, died July 4, 2017.

He was born Jan. 22, 1924, in Chicopee, Kan., a son of Espy and Marian Butler. Their family moved to Pittsburg, Kan., where he attended school, participated on the swim team and graduated high school. He married Marguerite Wilson on Jan. 7, 1951. She preceded him in death. He married Rhoda Grass on March 6, 1988. She preceded him in death on July 20, 2016.

He also was preceded in death by four brothers, Buford, Melford, Wesley and Cecil; and two sisters, DeEtta Butler and Lois Duncan.

Surviving are two daughters, Sandy (and Ken) Tripp and Mary Hartley, both of Springfield, Mo.; two sons, Pat (and Karla) of Cumming, Ga., and Paul (and Karla) of Spartanburg, S.C.; two stepsons, Greg (and Gloria) Grass of Heber City, Utah, and Jeff (and Patti) Grass of Houston, Texas; 11 grandchildren; and 11 great-grandchildren.

He served his country by joining the U.S. Army during World War II and was stationed in North Africa and India.

He received his bachelor degree in education at Kansas State Teachers College in Pittsburg, Kan., studied linguistics in Oklahoma, and attended Central Bible Institute in Springfield, Mo. In 1950, he was ordained by the Assemblies of God and received his missionary appointment to Upper Volta (Burkina Faso), West Africa.

Herb and Margie began their missionary journey by attending French language school in Paris, France, for nine months and then served 13 years as missionaries in Upper Volta, West Africa.

In 1964, he enrolled in Northwestern University in Evanston earning a Masters Degree in Anthropology and went on to complete his doctoral studies at Michigan State University. He taught French while earning his doctorate in Michigan and in 1972 became a Professor of Anthropology at Western Illinois University. He was a member of the American Anthropological Association, Alpha Mu Gamma Language Society and Kappa Delta Pi Education Society.

After 20 years of teaching at WIU, he retired but continued his life of service as a part-time minister for various churches, prisons and nursing homes. He volunteered as a Big Brother, reader at R.I.S. for the blind and visually impaired and was a regular bell ringer for the Salvation Army during the holidays.

Services were held Mon-day, July 10, at Dodsworth-Piper-Wallen Funeral Home in Macomb. Burial was in Forest Lawn Memory Gardens Cemetery.

Memorials may be made to Wycliffe Bible Translators, https://www.wycliffe.org/donate.

Condolences may be sent to www.dodsworthfh.com.

Published in the Astoria South Fulton Argus on 7/19/2017