Ralph "Buddy" Donald Trexler

It is with very sad and heavy hearts that we announce the passing of our sweet Daddy, "Buddy" Ralph Donald Trexler Sr, aged 82, on Thursday, January 13, 2022 (at his home where he wanted to be, surrounded by his family) but also with joy knowing he is now in Heaven with our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Buddy was born at home in Salisbury to the late Cletus Adam Trexler, Sr and Mildred Elizabeth Earnhardt Trexler on August 23, 1939. When he was very young, he was often teased for having the name "Ralph". He asked his mother why he was named that as he was often picked on for it. He decided he wanted a name that everyone would remember and one for which he wanted to be remembered for also. So, at the young age of about five or six, he told his mother "from now on I want to be known as 'Buddy' because that's what I want to be, a friend and a buddy to everyone". And that is exactly what he was

for the remainder of his earthly life, a friend to all. To say he never met a stranger would be an understatement. He would say what other people called strangers, he called "friends I just haven't met yet". He LOVED people, all people and it didn't matter how they treated him, he would just smile at them and say "God Bless You".

The first thing you knew after meeting Buddy, was that he was a man of great faith. He loved the Lord with all his heart and made sure to let others know it. Not a day went by that he didn't praise the Lord for all his blessings. Life wasn't always easy for him, but he praised the Lord with thanksgiving even through the rough times. One such time was when he was six years old. He was run over by a truck and not expected to live. The next year of his life was spent in the hospital with a broken back and day by day he kept his faith that God would see him through and He did.

The next big hardship he faced was losing his precious mother Mildred, in 1955 when he was only sixteen years old. He loved his mother dearly and losing her was one of the hardest things he ever went through. He missed her so much and went on to live 66 years without her, but she was never out of his mind. He would sing the song "If I Could Hear My Mother Pray Again" over and over to remind himself of the love she had for her family and for the godly woman that she was.

Missing his mother, the next year he married his high school sweetheart, Geraldine Whitley at the young age of seventeen. They went on to have four children together. Their third child, Lisa was born with leukemia and wasn't diagnosed until the last year of her life. She passed away at the tender age of 2 and a half. Her illness and death took its toll on their marriage, and sadly they divorced.

Buddy married his second wife, Nancy Elizabeth Apperson on May 18, 1967 and they would have five children together. Buddy and Nancy loved each other very much and though they went through hard and difficult times, that love remained for nearly 55 years. They took turns over the years caring for each other. When they vowed to love each other "in sickness and in health", they meant it. When he was diagnosed with colon cancer in 2014, she was there with him through all his treatments and his surgery. And never was their commitment more true than when our beloved father was diagnosed with dementia almost five years ago. We watched his dementia grow worse and his body grow tired, but our mother stayed by his side through it all. That dementia turned to Alzheimer's the last year of his life and though he didn't know us most of the time, he knew the Lord. It's strange how the disease works, some days he would know us and some days he knew no one. But, he always knew his Lord and Savior and would talk to Him every day.

Buddy was also one of the hardest working men God ever put on this earth. He took great pride in being a hard worker. He would say "my Bible says if a man doesn't work, he doesn't eat" and it meant a great deal to him. His career over the years took him from working at Carolina Rubber Hose, to building houses, to running a gas station (the old Phillips 66 service station in Gold Hill) to running his own cafe in Rockwell (Buddy's BBQ) back in the 1970's. But the majority of his career was spent working at Carolina Stalite in Gold Hill. He spent nearly 40 years working in maintenance and later on, as a supervisor. He also spent a great deal of time working as a volunteer firefighter with the Gold Hill Fire Department and was known for making his famous barbeque sauce for the fire department's barbeque shoulders made during holidays.

Buddy was an excellent cook, having learned from his mother early on. Family raved over the years of his cooking skills and this was never more apparent than the family reunions and Christmas get togethers where folks would wait in anticipation to see what he would bring (praying it would be a barbequed shoulder). His dishes were the first to disappear from the table and family members knew you better get to his first! He was never more happy than feeding people and telling them about the Lord while they ate. That was his special gift and one he felt blessed to share.

He grew up poor, but he felt like the richest boy on earth he would tell people. His mother made sure her children knew the Lord and that they loved others with all their hearts. He would tell stories of how as a young boy, every Saturday night he and his siblings would gather together in the floor in front of their large radio enjoying their homemade ice cream listening to the shows that would be presented. And how every Sunday afternoon after church, they looked forward to the fried chicken their mama would make for them. He never forgot his happy childhood and talked about it until his memory took it from him.

We thank God for the special gift He gave to us, a godly man who loved the Lord and who tried hard to put others before himself. He taught us to be humble and kind and to give to others. He taught us to be quick to forgive because our Lord forgives us when we ask. He taught us to never judge a book by it's cover because love and kindness will often times be where you least expect it, like the two old drunks (whom we had never met before) found out our Daddy was severely injured at work and would be out for an extended period of time with no income and lots of mouths to feed, decided to help. They came and brought firewood so we could stay warm and they brought food to put on our table so we wouldn't be hungry. We learned a very valuable lesson during that time from our father and we look forward to the day when we are all reunited with him once again.

In addition to his parents, Buddy was preceded in death by his stepmother, Alma Shives Kimball Trexler; sisters and brothers in law: Annie Mae Shepherd and husband Harold, Margaret Livengood and husband Donald, Faye Trexler Downum and husbands Everette Brady and Bill Downum; brothers Cletus Adam "June" Trexler, Jr and James "Jim" Trexler and a brother and sister who were stillborn upon birth.

Buddy was also preceded in death by two daughters, Lisa Gay Trexler and Robbin Trexler Baird; three grandsons, Scott A very Trexler, Gerald Wesley "Jerry" Trexler and Noah Thomas Baird; great granddaughter Elizabeth Nicole Trexler and nephew Jeffrey Mark Brady.

Those left to cherish his memory are his wife of nearly 55 years, Nancy Apperson Trexler, his only remaining sibling Roy Joe Trexler and wife Judy; his children Jane "Janie" Trexler Fraley and husband Rick, Ralph Donald Trexler, Jr "Donny" and wife Linda, Tammy Trexler Winstead and husband Richard, Mark Edward Trexler and former wife Laura Ann Trexler, Tonya Trexler Daniels and husband Stephen, Matthew Scott Trexler and wife Corinne, and Tina Trexler Brown and husband Michael; 32 grandchildren and 41 great grandchildren and numerous nieces, nephews and great nieces and great nephews.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made in Buddy's name to one of the following: Alzheimer's Research and Prevention Foundation, PO Box 30783, Tucson AZ 85751-0783 ( alzheimersprevention.org); St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis TN 38105 (stjude.org) or the Gold Hill Volunteer Fire Department, PO Box 346, Gold Hill NC 28071.

The family would like to thank all the wonderful people with Novant Health and the Hospice Team with the Glenn A. Kiser Hospice House in Salisbury who have been there for us this past year. A special thank you to Jessica, Tiffany, Sonia and Susan for taking our calls all hours of the night and day and for being by our side.

The family will greet friends and relatives at Linn-Honeycutt Funeral Home in China Grove on Friday, January 28, 2022 from 5-8pm. A celebration of life will be held on Saturday, January 29, 2022 in the chapel of Linn-Honeycutt at 1 :00pm conducted by Pastor Mark Hardin with a graveside service to follow at Westlawn Memorial Park in China Grove.

Due to the ongoing Covid pandemic, those in attendance are asked to follow NC State guidelines and please wear a mask during services.