Rev. Dr. Robert Anton Butziger passed away in Albuquerque, New Mexico on December 13, 2015 after a long illness.
He was the son of Lt. Col Edwin Lewis Butziger and Edna Myers Butziger. Born on Jan. 17, 1937 in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, Robert graduated from Lockwood High School in Warwick, and received a BA from the University of Rhode Island 1958. He was a member and Youth Leader at Greenwood Presbyterian Church in Warwick and later worked for Ashbury Methodist Church in Conimicut. After serving in the Navy as Communications Officer on the USS Vega, in Japan, he served on the USS Kankakee in Cuba.
He then received a Master of Divinity from Princeton Theological Seminary and was ordained to the Presbyterian ministry.
Bob worked as a pastor and clinical pastoral psychotherapist in Trenton, New Jersey and later became Pastor for the West Virginia Mountain Project in Dry Creek. He was Supervisor for Clinical Pastoral Education Appalachian Reg. Hospital in Middlesboro, Kentucky, when he became Director of the Morgan-Scott Project in Deer Lodge, Tennessee from 1972-1980. He served as Pastor for the Farragut, Tennessee Presbyterian Church from 1980-1986, St. Andrew Presbyterian Church in Albuquerque from 1986-1995, and was Director South Albuquerque Cooperative Ministry since 1996.
During his early years of ministry, Bob was a founding Board member for Habitat for Humanity and was succeeded by Jimmy Carter in his board position. Since 1980, Bob was Secretary of the Committee on Ministry for the Presbytery of Santa Fe, besides serving as marriage and family therapist since 1980. He received a Doctor of Ministry from San Francisco Theological Seminary in 1988. Most recently he served as pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of San Jose, California. From the time he was in high school until his death, Bob worked for children and families, interfaith movements, and devoted his whole life to the needs of others. A tribute to his pastoral leadership has been posted by the American Association of Pastoral Counselors and can be Googled at: Facebook Tributes to Robert Butziger.
He is survived by his wife of 53 years, Marianne Stahowski Butziger of Oakland, California; three children, Caryl Marie Butziger-Love and her partner, Natalie Love of Albuquerque, Peter James Butziger and his wife, Pamela Swales Butziger of Columbia, Maryland, and Laura Myers Watson and her husband, Kevin Watson of Steamboat Springs, Colorado. He is also survived by three grandchildren, David Williams of New Mexico, Matthew Williams of Texas, and Lauren Butziger Myrick of Maryland, and one brother, Arnold “Nick” Butziger and his wife, Rosalind, of Warwick, RI.
Funeral Services will be held on Feb. 13 at 1 p.m. at Los Gatos Presbyterian Church in Los Gatos, California. Donations in his memory may be sent online to the Habitat to Humanity.
