That Erna Butler had cancer came as quite a shock to both her and those who knew her best.
“She had no symptoms whatsoever and passed just weeks after her diagnosis,” said her daughter, Nancy Accetta. “It’s very sad, but we are thankful that the end came quickly and without pain. She was able to say her goodbyes and remained in good spirits to the end.”
Erna Dalton was born June 1, 1922, in Malden, Mass., and she died Feb. 2 at The Denver Hospice Inpatient Care Center. In addition to her daughter, she is survived by son Jim Butler, four grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.
Her husband, Owen “Brad” Butler, who had been chairman of Procter & Gamble and founded Colorado Bright Beginnings with then-Gov. Roy Romer, died in 1998.
The Butlers moved to Denver in the early 1990s, shortly after Brad retired. They immersed themselves in philanthropic work. Her credits include serving on the boards of the Colorado Symphony and the Central City Opera; and giving the lead gift to establish the University of Colorado College of Nursing’s Touched by a Nurse Fund, which awards scholarships to registered nurses pursuing a Ph.D. In the past year, she helped start Women of Note, an audience-recruitment vehicle for the CSO.
The University of Denver Graduate School of Social Work named the Erna and Brad Butler Institute for Families in the couple’s honor; Denver Hospice also dedicated a room in appreciation for their support.
“Erna was an astonishingly elegant and thoughtful person, someone who focused on a few things and did them very well,” says George Sparks, president of the Denver Museum of Nature & Science. They met when Sparks joined the Bright Beginnings board. “And then I learned she loved paleontology and was a volunteer at the museum. She would always joke that in her next life, she wanted to be a dinosaur paleontologist.”
Longtime friend Terry Biddinger called Butler a “consummate lady, always upbeat and always bringing out the best in people.”
What Biddinger also will hold dear is the memory of Erna’s popovers. “Who makes popovers anymore? Erna’s were the best, especially the ones that she made when we spent time in Maine over the past three summers.”
Jim Butler describes his mother as “emblematic of the Greatest Generation,” adding: “She and my dad grew up with the deprivation of the Great Depression, then went to war (Erna was a Marine Corps sergeant during World War II) and returned home to help rebuild America. Then they devoted the fruits of their labor to philanthropy.”
A memorial service will be at 11 a.m. March 10 at historic Trinity United Methodist Church, 1820 Broadway. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests donations to a favorite charity.
Joanne Davidson: 303-809-1314 or jdavidson@denverpost.com
