Gary Dean Buttars

Loving husband, father, grandfather, brother, and friend passed away peacefully surrounded by his family after a courageous two-year battle with esophageal cancer. He loved life, his family, and friends, and fought with strength and dignity throughout this battle.

Gary was born in Logan, Utah to Garrett BerDean and Amelia Buttars. He was the eldest of five children. Gary attended Logan City Schools and graduated from Logan High School in 1970. He later attended Auto Trade Tec school in Salt Lake City.

Gary met the love of his life, Nancy Pitkin, in the summer of 1972. Their first date was to the Cache County Fair, the start of a beautiful love story. They were married on June 15, 1974 and were married for nearly 52 years. He adored Nancy. Together they had four children, Brandon, Cody, Trevor, and Alisa. His proudest achievement in life was the family he built.

Gary started out his career as a Brick Mason. He was proud of his craftsmanship, he bricked many fireplaces for family and friends and also bricked their family home. He then began working in the maintenance department for Thiokol/ATK/Northrup Grumman where he worked with integrity and determination for 36 years and retired in 2020.

As a father, Gary supported his children in their activities and pathways they took. He sat through countless dance recitals, drill competitions, horse shows, and sporting events. He coached each of his children in one sport or another, including soccer, baseball, and horseback riding. He became a Horse 4-H leader and served in many volunteer roles including State President. He was always the first person to volunteer his time and put hard work into making youth programs successful.

After his children grew up, he became involved with The Fraternal Order of Eagles. He truly lived the organizations motto of “People Helping People.” He served in multiple roles at the local and state level including, as the 2024-2025 State Worthy President of the Utah chapter. He worked hard to organize events, uplift members and fundraise for local and national charities. He was proud of his work and made many lifelong friendships.

Gary’s favorite pastimes were taking adventures and creating memories with Nancy and his family. He loved camping, river rafting the Snake River, hunting trips, yearly getaways to The Grand Tetons and Yellowstone, trips to Eagles conventions and trips to Hawaii. He was proud to have celebrated his and Nancy’s 50th wedding anniversary with the entire family in Maui. He also loved family gatherings, dressing up for Halloween, dancing with Nancy, and attending his grandchildren’s events and activities.

Gary is survived by his loving wife Nancy, children Brandon, Cody (Amber), Trevor (Curran), Alisa Christensen (Tyler). His grandchildren, Erika Rose, Makinlee, Corbin, Paisley, and Parker Christensen. Mother-in-law Lorene Pitkin. Siblings, Karen Buttars, JoAnn Anderson, Kathleen Buttars, Bart (Cheri) Buttars, in-laws Susan Goldsberry, Debra (Glade) Smith, Rod (Lori) Pitkin.

He was preceded in death by his parents Garrett Berdean and Amelia Buttars, Father-in-law Cecil Lyle Pitkin and brother-in-law Lynn Goldsberry.

Gary wanted to thank the staff of Gossner Cancer Center, especially his doctors and nurses, and his family and friends that were there to support him. He also tried many holistic medicine methods and thanked the ladies who generously gave of their knowledge and time.

The family would also like to thank CNS Hospice.

“Surround yourself with family, keep them close and love them each day, you never know how long you will have them here with you, Love Gary”

A celebration of life will take place on June 19 at Allen-Hall Mortuary 34 E Center, Logan UT. A visitation will begin at 11:00 am with services to follow at 12:00 pm.

Memories and condolences may be shared and expressed at www.allenmortuaries.com.