The late Deputy Reeve Rick Butler, who died in a Nakiska accident, Dec. 26. was memorialized on May 6.
Dozens of friends, family members and colleagues gathered at the Butler acreage, located near Cochrane to plant hundreds of spruce and lilac seedlings in honour if the man.
“He would be so happy to see this happening,” said Butler’s wife, Gwyn.
“He really believed in protecting what we have and ensuring that this is here for the future.”
The family has planted more than 10,000 trees through the Alberta Shelterbelt program over the past 12 years since the couple moved to Cochrane with their two daughters, Corrie and Marni.
“Rick became passionate about trees when we moved here,” said Gwyn.
“Because of where we live, we have this awareness and enjoyment of nature.”
Gwyn said she and her daughters decided to host the tree planting in order to honour that dedication.
“The trees became a symbol of something he just loved to do - he was always improving and adding to the earth,” she said.
“Since he has passed away, it has become symbolic for us because the tree represents the fact that what he has built up in his life and how he lived his life was always for the future, always building something better.”
Corrie, 22, and Marni, 20, recruited several of their friends to lend a hand in planting the seedlings, with a few also stepping up to help organize the event.
“I’m so excited to see the youth get involved,” said Gwyn.
“A lot of these young people have been in our home at different times and it’s great to see them interested in something that was so important to Rick.”
She added that getting teens and young adults involved in the betterment of their community and environment is one of the primary focuses of the Rick Butler Leadership Fund, which was established in his honour and has so far raised roughly $30,000.
“A lot of it had to do with the relationship Rick had with youth,” said Gwyn.
“We saw a gap in the launch from school into work, and we hope this will provide the encouragement and direction a lot of these young people need.”
Gwyn hopes the fund will have raised close to $100,000 by the end of the year (including a matching grant from the Community Spirit grant for whatever funds they raise), which will be awarded to young people between the ages of 18 and 30 who take a grassroots leadership role in their community.
The program will also include mentorship by business professionals, government officials and community leaders, who will strive to ensure award recipients’ success.
For more information about the Rick Butler Leadership Fund or to get involved in planting trees in Butler’s honour, visit www.rickbutler.ca
