Betty Lou Green Butler

Betty Lou Green Butler, beloved wife, mother and grandmother, passed away peacefully in her home May 8, 2015, in Smithfield, Utah, at the age of 88 due to the effects of Alzheimer’s.
Betty Lou was born in the shadow of the majestic Teton Peaks, May 22, 1926, in Alta, Wyoming, the eldest of six children, born to Ernest Delbert (Doc) Green and Vada Buxton. She attended elementary school in Alta, Wyoming, through 10th grade, then attended and graduated from Teton High School in Driggs, Idaho. There she met the love of her life Milton W. Butler, a cute farm boy with a gentle smile and great sense of humor. Like many his age, he signed up to begin his service in World War II with the United States Navy as soon as he graduated from high school. Betty Lou moved to Salt Lake City to attend LDS Business College and was soon employed by the Woodbury Corporation as a secretary. She received a telegram stating simply, “Marry Me,” and during Milton’s week leave before duty in the Pacific, they were married, for time and all eternity, in the Salt Lake Temple November 29, 1944. After his honorable discharge, Milton & Betty Lou returned to Teton Valley to begin their life’s adventure together.
Milton and Betty had three children: the first, a girl, died at birth; the second, a son, Kyle Milton, and third, a daughter, Louise (Letham). Betty Lou was a devoted homemaker, keeping an immaculate home filled with music, love and laughter. Out of her personal qualities of creativity and frugality, she developed skills like sewing, knitting, quilting, gardening, and cooking. Some of her specialties were: huckleberry jam, lemon meringue pie, sugared spudnuts, home-made rootbeer, and because her husband grew fields of potatoes, she cooked them a hundred different ways! She best displayed her artistic abilities with quilts that graced her family’s beds; sweaters that warmed in the chill of winter, and beautifully-sewn formals and wedding dress for her daughter. Betty Lou shared her love of music and entertainment when she and Milton, along with four other talented couples, founded Pierre’s Playhouse, a melodrama theatre in Victor, Idaho. She acted on the stage, sang in the olios, took the tickets, and shared her infectious laugh with audiences for many years. They later spent the winters in Cave Creek, Arizona, where they built & performed in another family-oriented theatre. She was a natural on stage. She loved family get-togethers, cook outs, and annual horse trips around the Teton Peaks. Life’s most simple pleasures brought her much joy.
Though Betty Lou always had a “project” she was working on, she worked outside the home in various secretarial and seamstress capacities. She loved making new friends and did so easily. A positive, funny and joyful person to be around, she always found the rainbows in life. People loved her.
Betty Lou was an active member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Her favorite position was the primary chorister, a position she held for 20 years!
She is survived by Milton, her husband and true love of 70 years; daughter Louise (David) Letham; her four grandchildren Melody Baugh; Christopher Baugh; James (Brittney McInnes); and Jennifer (Adam) Ogden; one sister, Erna (Robert); and brothers Delbert (Nina Poulson); Gary (Jeannine Beard); Ben (Trudy Volman); and Ken; sister-in-law, Margaret (Conrad); brother-in-law, Blaine (Barbara Gillette). She also has four step-grandchildren, six great-grandchildren, fourteen step-great-grandchildren, and many nieces and nephews. She loved them all dearly and, Betty Lou, we dearly love you!
Preceding her in death are her parents; a baby daughter; her son Kyle; a sister-in-law, Phyllis (Maurice) Lambert; and a brother-in-law, Conrad Head.
The family wishes to express gratitude to those who showed love, compassion, and gentle care to Betty Lou throughout her illness: neighbors, Dr. Steven Salisbury, Hospice, & Community Nursing Service caregivers, Holly, Natasha, Julie, and others. In lieu of tokens of condolence, anyone desiring so could make a donation to the Alzheimer’s Association at www.alz.org
Memorial services will be Tuesday, May 12th at 10:30 a.m. at the Smithfield 21st Ward building, 340 East 300 South Bishop Dority presiding. A viewing will be held from 9:00 to 10:00 a.m. A brief grave-site service will be held at the Driggs Idaho Cemetery the same day at 4:00 p.m. where her body will be laid to rest. Services under the direction of Nelson Funeral Home.