Robert Ormanzo Butler (1930-2017)

Robert Ormanzo Butler (Bob) died at his home in Mukilteo, Washington State, on July 27, 2017, at the age of 87. His wife, Lorna, survives him. He was born May 31, 1930, in Albert Lea, Minnesota to Ella Mae (Gullickson) and Ormanzo ('Summy') Butler. He was his parents' only child. Bob's parents farmed near Northwood IA on land purchased by Bob's maternal grandfather, Gilbert Gullickson. Bob's family came from Voss, Norway.

Bob was an Iowa farm boy. He grew up helping with the milking, feeding dairy cows, pigs and chickens, selling apples from the family orchard, and occasionally, helping with household chores. He walked about a mile to a one-room country school, which he attended for eight years in Grove Township. At age 15, Bob took over the farm. During the same year, Bob contacted polio, and was treated at the Sister Elizabeth Kenny Institute in Minneapolis. A year later, he finished high school in Northwood, Iowa.

Bob began his university education in 1949 at St Olaf College, Northfield, Minnesota. After one year, he returned to the family farm due to the illness, and subsequent death, of his father. Bob continued farming until 1957.

In old 4H record book from Bob's teenage years there was a note where Bob described having gone to a meeting of 4Hers on the ISU campus. He heard a speaker talk about international work. In the book he had written a note, "I want to do that someday."

Following the death of his mother in 1956, Bob enrolled in Iowa State University. After his third term, he went to Panama as an International Farm Youth Exchange (IFYE) student, working on six different fincas. This was the beginning of a long international career, and a lifetime of global interests.

Bob completed his BS in Agriculture, Soils and Rural Sociology at Iowa State University in 1961, after which he worked for Iowa State University Extension (1961-65) in Mason City, Iowa. The friendships he made with Cerro Gordo County young people remained with him over the years. Later he completed his masters (Extension/Continuing Education 1966) and doctorate (Sociology 1971) degrees at Colorado State University. In 1966 Bob moved to Lagos, Nigeria to work with the Colorado State University team in the Consortium for Nigerian Rural Development. Among his greatest joys was his travel throughout Nigeria, and his friendships with Nigerian traders and artists - many of whom he welcomed to his home.

Bob returned to Colorado State University in 1968 to complete his PhD. Here he met
his wife, Lorna Michael. They married on October 25, 1968, at the home of Jim and Evie Kincaid. In 1970, Bob and Lorna moved to Pullman, Washington, where he joined Washington State University as the director of the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP).

Bob and Lorna began to think about a move to Africa, and in 1973, relocated to Malawi, where Bob headed up the Department of Rural Development at Bunda College of Agriculture near Lilongwe. He greatly enjoyed his students, Malawian friends and international colleagues, many of whom became lifelong friends.

In 1975 Bob returned to Washington State University, Seattle, as Chair of the King County Extension Office. He loved working with a large and creative extension team, and progressive government leaders. But the love of Africa was still calling. In 1979 Bob and Lorna moved to Maseru, Lesotho, in association with WSU's Farming Systems Research Project, situated in the Lesotho Ministry of Agriculture. Bob served as the project team leader/director.

Bob returned to Washington State University in 1982. He filled numerous positions: Assistant to the Dean of the College of Agriculture; Acting Director of the State 4-H Program; and Campus Coordinator of the Jordan Valley Research Project. In 1989 he relocated to Jordan to as a member of WSU's international development team in Amman, Jordan. He lived in Amman until 1991, again making lifelong friends. After his return to Seattle in 1991, Bob became WSU's Director of Extension for all counties in western Washington. Bob retired from Washington State University in December 1998.

Bob moved to Ames, Iowa, in January of 2000 when Lorna accepted a position at Iowa State University. During their seven years in Iowa, Bob reconnected with friends and family of his earlier years; he also made new friends. He provided campaign support to a friend who was running for a position in the state Democratic Party; and served as president of the local chapter of the United Nations Association. His love of good food and great people propelled him in to the kitchen where he served as 'chef de cuisine' for many gatherings and dinners at home.

Following Lorna's retirement from ISU in 2007, Bob and Lorna moved to North Saanich, British Columbia, Canada. Here he took a great interest in turning his large yard into a native plant woodland garden. He loved plants, artistic and whimsical garden features, and his pets - two Corgis, Kyla and Gruffin, along with two special Siamese cats, Isis and Bastet. Bob made friends easily, and over the 10 years in this beautiful location, enjoyed his neighbors, and get-togethers with Lorna's family. In the fall of 2016, Bob and Lorna returned to Washington State, locating near the old town of Mukilteo.

Bob developed a keen interest in the African arts in the 1960's while living and traveling in Nigeria. During that period, he befriended contemporary artists in the village of Oshogbo in Western Nigeria, for example Twin Seven-Seven and L. O. Fakeye. His interest in African art, and in the artists themselves, continued during subsequent visits to various African countries. He enjoyed his favorite art pieces in his home until his death.

A celebration of Bob's life was held in his home on July 29, 2017. Interment of his ashes will occur in a few months in his family plot in Sunset Rest Cemetery, Northwood, Iowa. Memorials may be made in Bob's name to either the Graduate Student Travel Award for International Study in Sustainable Livelihoods, Iowa State University Foundation (http://www.foundation.iastate.edu/s/1463/giving/start.aspx); or to Partners in Health (https://donate.pih.org/give-today).

Special appreciation is extended to the doctors, nurses and staff who cared for Bob at Everett Clinic, Providence Regional Medical Center, and Providence Hospice and Home Care, Everett, Washington.