Amy Louise (Smith) Butler July 12, 1967 ~ November 18, 2023 (age 56)

Services for Amy Louise Butler, 56, are scheduled for 2:00 PM, Fri., Nov. 24, 2023 at Grace Fellowship Baptist Church, 2000 S. Main St., Portales, New Mexico.  Amy died on November 18, 2023, at her home in Dora, NM.  Pastor Ron Fox and Pastor Jeff Fox will officiate. Burial will follow at Mt. Zion Cemetery north of Dora with Jeremy Butler, Logan Bilbrey, Jake Johnson, Jerry Butler, David Butler, and Sal Gonzales serving as pallbearers. Honorary pallbearers are Bert Smith, Paul Smith, Eugene Trcka, Mark Butler Sr., Mark Butler Jr., Daniel Butler, Joshua Trcka, Billy Warmouth, and Steve Barron.  Memorial donations may be made in Amy’s honor to Grace Fellowship Baptist Church, 2000 S. Main St., Portales.

Amy—known as “Mimi” to her beloved grandchildren—was born on July 12, 1967, in Pontiac, Michigan, to Kendall and Darlene Smith.  She accepted the Lord as her Savior in 1972 when she was five years old. Her early years were spent in Rochester, MI, with her parents and two brothers. She especially loved the Christmas holidays and talked often of how certain smells would bring back vivid memories of those times.

Amy graduated from Rochester Hills Christian Academy in 1985, and that summer—on July 3, 1985, to be specific—she met a young man named Steve Butler while they were both attending a camp meeting in Romeo, MI.  In 1986, Steve skipped work and proposed to Amy by the Blue Water Bridge in Sarnia, Canada. Happily, she said yes. They married in 1987 and returned regularly to the camp meeting where they first met. They were called “the camp meeting couple.”

After marriage, Amy and Steve lived first in Pontiac, MI, then from 1998-2007 in San Antonio, Texas, and from 2007 until the present in Dora.

In 1991, Amy and Steve became parents when Jeremy was born. In 1994, they welcomed twin daughters, Ashley and Aubrey. In 2009, a second son, Kendall William, was stillborn.  An active and involved mother, Amy was adored by her children’s friends and classmates. She was that extra mom to so many kids, always present with a hug and words of encouragement.  She found a new and extra-special joy in 2018 when the first of her six grandchildren was born and she officially became “Mimi.”  Amy adored her family and would sacrifice everything she had to take care of them. She was the person who made every holiday or family gathering extra special. They will not be the same without her.

Amy and Steve enjoyed traveling and finding new places to eat. They also found satisfaction in renovating fixer-uppers into family homes that looked new and beautiful. Amy always made sure there was at least one cat around the place.  She was an avid shopper and was delighted when she could find and share a good deal. Her family will miss their devoted shopping buddy.

Amy was a much-loved member of the staff at Dora Elementary School from 2009 through 2019, helping many young children develop a lifelong love of reading.

In February of 2022, a diagnosis of metastatic breast cancer was an unwelcome surprise. Amy was considered cancer-free in August that year, but in March 2023 the cancer returned. Through her entire illness, she kept her beautiful smile and never lost her steadfast faith in the Lord.

Amy was preceded in death by her father, Kendall Smith, who died when Amy was only 22, and a son, Kendall William Butler.

Survivors include her husband, Steve  Butler of Dora; her children, Jeremy Butler and Desiree of Clovis, NM, Aubrey and Logan Bilbrey of Tatum, NM, and Ashley and Jake Johnson of Whiteface, TX; her grandchildren, Harper and Juniper Butler of Clovis, Everly and Wiley Bilbrey of Tatum, and Ivy and Brody Johnson of Whiteface; her mother, Darlene Cavender of Clinton Township, MI; her brothers, Bert and Crystal Smith of Rochester, MI, and Paul Smith of Mt. Clemons, MI; her in-laws, George and Masedonia Butler of Balch Springs, TX; her brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law, Eugene and Lucy Trcka of Wildomar, CA, Mark and Maggie Butler of Mesa, AZ, and Jerry and Michelle Butler of Grinnell, Iowa; and her nieces and nephews, Mark Butler Jr., Daniel and Rebecca Butler, David and Karen Butler, Joshua and Brianna Trcka, Sarah and Nehemiah Fuller, Makayla Smith, Colin Smith, Regan Butler, and Hartley Butler.

The family is especially grateful to the nurses at Presbyterian Hospice in Clovis, and all of the friends and family who provided Amy with unwavering support and unconditional love, especially during these last challenging months.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Amy Louise (Smith) Butler, please visit our floral store.