Doris Marie Butler

Doris Marie Forest Butler was born November 29, 1930, in Lewis, Colorado to Melvin and Eva (Jewell) Forest. She was the second of four children. Her dad was a government trapper for 23 years and a cattle rancher, and her mom was both a neighborhood florist and a bookkeeper in Cortez. Doris passed on September 20, 2021, at the age of 90. Of her family of birth, she is preceded in death by her parents and by her brother Robert Forest who was of Reno, Nevada. She is survived by her brother Gene (Felicite) Forest of Durango, Colorado, and her sister Patricia Forest Clements of Grand Junction, Colorado.

Doris graduated from Cortez High School and attended Business School in Albuquerque, New Mexico. She married John Butler on August 11, 1951, and they just celebrated 70 years of marriage. Our dad, John, says, “I thank God every morning for letting Doris be my wife for 70 years. She was such a good wife.” They spent 65 of those years living on their farm on East Orchard Mesa where Doris expanded her stunning flower gardens every decade.

Her work was primarily on the homestead and in raising their four children, Geri Anderson of Everton, Arkansas, Cindy (Steve) Richardson of Whitewater, Colorado, Randy (Gail) Butler of Caldwell, Texas, and Kevin (Mary) Butler of Clifton, Colorado.

Doris was also preceded in death by four babies born to her and John who died in young infancy: Donald, John Jr., Brenda, and Linda. Besides her husband John and their four adult children, Doris is survived by grandchildren Christopher Richardson, Gwyn Richardson Hittle, Wendy Richardson Williams, Jacob Richardson, Tammy Eastman Bendetti, Joseph Eastman, Isaac Eastman, Eric Gregory, Trae Williams, Taylor Williams, Tory Williams, Brandy Butler, and 18 great-grandchildren.

Doris was a talented woman who showed God’s love to her community by taking on important tasks she saw that needed done. She was the bookkeeper for the First Baptist Church of Palisade for 30 years and served as Camp Registrar for the Grand Mesa Baptist Camp for 19 years. Additionally, she and John spent countless hours remodeling the church sanctuary, youth rooms, and parsonage. She began doing taxes in her forties, and continued that, at least for family, into her eighties. She was an accomplished seamstress, pie baker, and cake decorator. And she could plan a trip like no one else. Additionally, she had a key role in the formation and establishment of the Colorado West Land Trust (previously Mesa Land Trust) in 1980 and beyond to save the region’s agricultural lands. In that same vein, Doris also served on the Mesa County Planning Commission in the 1980’s and was a founding Board member of the Palisade Historical Society.

Her service will be held at the Palisade United Methodist Church, 365 Main Street, Palisade, Colorado on Saturday, October 9, 2021, at 1:30 p.m. The service may be viewed online at https://www.facebook.com/PalisadeUnitedMethodistChurch. In lieu of flowers, Doris had requested donations on her behalf to Palisade United Methodist Church, Colorado West Land Trust, Palisade Historical Society, or to HopeWest Hospice.