Judging by the sheer number of attendees, Pahrump’s official Goodwill Ambassador received a proper and heart-felt send-off on Saturday.
Several hundred residents and community leaders attended Butch Andre Harper’s memorial ceremony inside the Pahrump Nugget’s Events Center.
Harper died Feb. 21 at the age of 73.
Master of ceremonies Ski Censke spoke of Harper’s unyielding generosity for others in the community and across the nation.
He noted, that at the end of the day, “it’s all about Butch.”
Censke said many lives in the community were touched by Harper’s simple kindness, whether it be through a free cup of coffee or a tank of gas for someone who was in need.
He said Saturday’s event was more of a celebration of Harper’s life, once people overcame their sorrow.
“That’s why we’re here,” he said. “The contribution that he made to the community is just phenomenal. Kids all over Pahrump have bicycles, people have furniture and groceries and the people in Aurora, Colorado received a plaque. It goes on and on and on, and the common denominator boils down to one: Butch. Normally you see people who have a certain area of expertise in different programs. Not Butch, he worked all of the programs.”
Affectionately known as “Patches,” Harper made a vow to his wife to continue doing good things for the community’s children, seniors and those who have served in the military.
His wife passed away in 2004 from complications of Multiple Sclerosis.
Since that time, he became known in the community for collecting patches from businesses, military veterans and first responders.
He would assemble all of the patches into collages and present them to children’s hospitals and veterans’ facilities across the country.
He is also credited with starting the local Act of Kindness Award several years ago, where he would personally present an inscribed plaque to local individuals who worked to make Pahrump a nicer community.
All on his own dime.
During the holiday season, Harper was a fixture volunteering his time at the annual community Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner at NyE Communities Coalition.
He also helped to organize the giving of Christmas presents to families who would otherwise have no presents at all.
Pastor Ron Fairbairn of Central Valley Baptist Church provided a bit of levity following the opening prayer.
Fairbairn removed his collared button-down shirt to reveal a t-shirt Harper designed several years ago with the message “Smiles Over Pahrump.”
“This is what Butch was all about,” he said.
Harper’s nephew, Andre, said he preferred to speak about his uncle in the present tense. He was joined by surviving family members.
“Butch has a capacity for change,” he said. “He’s a very courageous man and he has the courage to change. It’s really a simple thing and I think all of us, if we can keep that in mind and have that spirit of change in our hearts, the world would be a better place, and Pahrump certainly.”
Harper began his first goodwill effort in 2009, when a local boy stricken with cancer wanted to set the world record for the most business cards collected by a single person.
Harper helped 10-year-old Brandon Rayner collect more than 1 million cards before he succumbed to the disease.
It was Rayner, Harper said, who inspired the act of kindness award which was adopted by at least one media outlet in Las Vegas.
KLAS-TV, the CBS affiliate in Las Vegas, turned the tables on Harper earlier this year by presenting him with the Act of Kindness Award.