The spirit of Sunny Butler turned her memorial service into a Mardi Gras-like celebration Thursday evening at the Rohan Recreation Center.
It was a night filled with memories, joy, laughter and some tears. Lloyde “Sunny” Butler, noted dancer in The Villages for the past decade, died in May after a nearly four-year battle with cancer.
She meticulously planned her memorial celebration, and wanted a Mardi Gras atmosphere, with family, friends, music, beads, a champagne toast and, finally, the release of white doves to the sky.
“I loved this night; it was everything she hoped for and everything she wanted,” said her son, Louis L. Kitchin. “She loved having a good time and she loved dancing. That’s what tonight was all about.”
“I’m overwhelmed with how many people here loved our mother,” said her daughter, Cary Ballou, who flew in from Arizona. “I’m glad she brought so much joy to so many people.
“She adored her life in The Villages. There was always something for her to do, and always an opportunity for her to dance and perform. My mother really blossomed here. It was the happiest I’ve ever seen her.”
Sunny Butler wanted this memorial to be a happy occasion, filled with joy rather than mourning. Near the end of the event, friends and family gathered for a champagne toast.
“Everytime I visited my mother, she always brought out her best champagne and best glasses, and we would have a toast,” said Elizabeth Ballou, her daughter who came in from Chicago. “That was the way we greeted each other. And we did it again tonight.”
Bob Christy met Sunny Butler about six years ago at Cody’s in The Villages. They quickly fell in love and became soulmates.
“It was that way from the first moment our eyes met,” Christy said. He talked about traveling the country with Sunny, dancing, boating, skate-boarding and having a blast living life to the fullest.
“She was so much fun,” Christy said. But there were other moments filled with anguish: in emergency rooms; during chemo treatments and at Hospice.
“She was filled with courage and life, and she enjoyed a good time,” Christy said.
Dianne Bolten, who often appeared with Sunny in local dance productions, talked of Butler’s generosity. Bolten displayed some of Butler’s dance costumes. Butler danced with Music in Motion, and also Questar Productions’ Christmas Spectacular.
“She donated many of her costumes for use in our productions,” Bolten said. “So you see, Sunny is still a part of us.”
Chaplain Christopher A. Salerno spent much time with Butler and her family, during the final year of her life. He spoke about her personal courage and will to perform on stage, despite cancer.
“I think tonight very much displayed Sunny’s spirit and zest for life,” he said. “It also showed how she impacted and helped others, and what a strong sense of family she had.”
The memorial ended when those in attendance went outside at dusk. Sonny Butler’s children released a box of doves, and they soared to the dark sky and vanished into the sunset.
“Tonight was Sunny’s dream come true,” said Debra Heath-Strickland, her close friend who organized the memorial. “This is what she wanted and it was special.”