Duane “Duey” Butler

<p>Duane “Duey” Butler, who oversaw the construction of Sonoma County's landfill and numerous engineering pro-jects around the world, died Tuesday at his Santa Rosa home.</p><!-- Nothing to do. The paragraph has already been output --><p>Butler, who was 74, had been diagnosed with kidney cancer.</p><p>He left a lasting imprint in Sonoma County with his work designing the Mecham Road landfill and numerous bridges spread across the region.</p><p>In 1974, he expanded his vision, after taking a leave of absence from the county to work on a United Nations project in the Bahamas.</p><p>Finding inspiration in that trip, Butler later joined a friend, Mundhir Eljumaily, in founding the engineering and consulting firm EBA Wastechnologies in 1979.</p><p>Their work spanned 13 different countries, including China, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates and Nigeria.</p><p>A born storyteller, Butler regaled family and friends with his tales of adventures abroad.</p><p>His sister-in-law, Doris Lewis of Santa Rosa, said Butler was multi-faceted, gregarious and generous to a fault.</p><p>“To know someone 57 years and never see them raise their voice or be angry, that's unbelievable,” she said.</p><p>Butler was born July 10, 1935, to Rolfe and Pearl Butler in Reno. He was raised in Petaluma and graduated from Petaluma High School as class valedictorian. He also was an accomplished athlete, lettering in baseball, basketball and football.</p><p>He attended Santa Rosa Junior College on a Doyle Scholarship before transferring to UC Berkeley, where he was a pitcher on the baseball team.</p><p>Gaye LeBaron, a Press Democrat columnist and former classmate of Butler's at the junior college and at Cal, recalled commuting to Berkeley with Butler aboard the ferry. At the time, the Richmond-San Rafael bridge was under construction.</p><p>“Duane would go up on the deck and take his slide rule out to try and calculate when the two ends of the bridge would meet, and where,” Le-Baron said.</p><p>After graduating with an engineering degree, Butler married Betty Jane Christiansen, his high school sweetheart. The couple, who were married 52 years, had two daughters.</p><p>Butler was a student of history with a deep interest in the Civil War. Neighbors will remember him for gardening to the strains of John Philip Sousa marches.</p><p>Other passions were his 1964 Porsche, English bulldogs and Sonoma County athletic events. He was inducted into the Petaluma High School Athletic Hall of Fame.</p><p>Besides his wife, Butler is survived by daughters Sheryl deLeuze and Marilane Bergfelt, both of Napa.</p><p>No services will be held. A celebration of his life is being planned.</p><p>The family suggests memorial contributions to SRJC Foundation for Doyle Scholarships, 1501 Mendocino Ave., 95401, or Sonoma County Sports Boosters, P.O. Box 1134, Rohnert Park, 94927.</p><p>— Derek J. Moore</p>