August 23, 1941 – April 19, 2026
Lloyd “Butch” Houdek, age 84, passed away surrounded by his loving family on Sunday, April 19, 2026, at Regional Health Services of Howard County in Cresco, Iowa.
Butch was born on August 23, 1941, to Clem and Adeline (Kupka) Houdek in Cresco, Iowa. He attended school and graduated from Cresco High School with the Class of 1960. Butch continued his education later in life at Northeast Iowa Community College, receiving his associates of applied science degree in ag business.
On December 28, 1963, he married Lavada Hass. They were married at the Assumption Catholic Church in Cresco. Together they raised their two children, Todd and Teri Sue.
By the age of fourteen Butch was already hard at work: setting pins at the bowling alley, doing chores and baling hay for the area farmers. This would set the pace for the strong work ethic that would stick with him throughout his life. In the years to follow, he was a mechanic at several automotive shops including Daly Chevrolet, Bigalk Chevrolet, Kratz Motors and H & S Motors. Butch continued his working career as a service tech and mechanic for Judd Brown Construction and spent many years working on the road for Reilly Construction until he retired.
Everyone who knew Butch also knew he wasn’t afraid of hard work, and with the help of his family, he was able to continue to farm. Farming was his true love, raising both crops and livestock. His time on the farm also included his dedication to planting hundreds of trees, providing windbreaks and caring for the land. Butch was incredibly proud of Todd and Teri Sue and enjoyed passing on to them a love for animals, gardening, General Motors Vehicles, a hard work ethic, and always helping others.
Butch was an early riser and wondered why his family didn’t share his enthusiasm. This enabled him to find time to use his carpentry, plumbing and electrical talents to remodel a couple of houses in town. He was the kind of man who could fix just about anything and always had several projects he was busy working on. He had a true talent for taking damaged vehicles and putting them back together using his mechanical and body work skills.
You could always find Butch most days in his John Deere Gator along with his dog, Louie. They enjoyed running errands, checking crops and gravel road bird scouting. Butch had a love for John Deere tractors, especially his model G that he fully restored and his John Deere 4000.
For twenty plus years, some of the best moments were spent on Woman Lake with his family. Giving him not only countless hours fishing on the boat, but treasured memories with forever friends, Charlie and Marilyn.
Over the years, Butch became the master chef when it came to Friday night fish fry’s and Christmas Eve ice cream drinks. This tradition continued in his shop on the farm that was equipped for cooking and entertaining. He truly enjoyed spending time with family and friends.
We celebrate Butch – a man with a great sense of humor, playful personality and always felt the need for speed.
Survivors include his wife Lavada; son Todd Houdek of Cresco; daughter Teri Sue (Jason) Gassmann of Ankeny, IA; grandsons Hunter Houdek of Rochester, MN and Gage Houdek of Stewartville, MN; granddaughters Taylor (Michael) Gassmann of Nashville, TN and Tessah Gassmann of Ankeny; brother Lynus Houdek and a sister Joan Curtis, along with a niece, several nephews and wonderful friends.
He was preceded in death by his parents, granddaughter Allie Houdek, brother in-law Chuck Curtis, father in-law Al Hass and mother in-law Madeline and Ray Duneman.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to the Cresco Fire Department or the Humane Society of Northeast Iowa.
A visitation will be held on Saturday, April 25, 2026, from 3:00-5:30 p.m. at Schmelzer (formerly Lindstrom) Funeral Home in Cresco.
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