Robert “Butch” Hindenach

Robert “Butch” Hindenach passed away peacefully into the eternal, loving arms of his Savior, Jesus Christ on Thursday, July 2, 2026, at Rose Arbor Place. He was born in Kalamazoo, Michigan on September 23, 1939, the son of Dorothy (Tuttle) Hindenach and Russell Hindenach who preceded him in death. Also preceding him in death are his older brother, Staff Sgt. Russell Hindenach Jr, sisters Barbara (Hindenach) Paynich and husband Victor and Nancy (Hindenach) Foster and husband Tom.

He is survived by his wife, Deanna (Brill) Hindenach, his Paw Paw High School sweetheart and loving wife of 63 years. Also surviving are twin sons, Erik Hindenach (Angela Wellington) of Paw Paw, Mark Hindenach (Jami Bonter) of Portage, and daughters, Kristin (Lee) Bishop of Bloomdale, Ohio, and Kerrin Kassel of Kalamazoo. He is also survived by grandchildren, Kaelin Lambert, Luke Lambert, Kiya Benschoter, Connor Hindenach, Kolby Hindenach, Julia Hindenach, Jakob Hindenach, Holli Jalali, Luke Williams, and Henrik Kurzmann, along with many nieces and nephews. 

Butch graduated from Paw Paw High School in 1957, and went on to major in journalism at Western Michigan University. He was also on the WMU Bowling Team. Following college, he went to work at the Tuttle Floral Company in Paw Paw where he eventually became the owner and manager. In later years, he became a sportswriter for the Herald-Palladium and the Courier-Leader, fulfilling his life-long passion for journalism.

He loved his hometown of Paw Paw and became a local historian, writing books about the village, famous residents, and other unique stories pertaining to Paw Paw. He also developed his Paw Paw Now and Then Facebook page which currently has over 14,000 members, an accomplishment he was very proud of. Butch was Paw Paw High School’s “unofficial” sports statistician. He authored several books tracing Paw Paw athletics beginning in the late 1800’s to the present, representing his dedication to recording Paw Paw sports history. He was inducted into the 2009 Paw Paw High School Hall of Fame for his efforts documenting and recording stats for all of the Red Wolves/Redskins athletic teams. His work represented one of the most comprehensive collections of high school sports data in the State of Michigan. He remained in contact with many local coaches and organizations regarding his work up until his death. Butch was an avid sports fan, frequenting the sidelines/bleachers of thousands of Paw Paw games. Watching his grandchildren participate in sports/arts was something he cherished. Coaching was also a lifelong passion for Butch. He coached girls basketball at Trinity Lutheran School in Paw Paw for a few seasons, where he saw several players move on to high school and college sports.

Butch’s life will be celebrated on Monday, July 13, 2026, at Trinity Lutheran Church, 721 Pine Street in Paw Paw. A visitation and brunch buffet will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. followed by a celebration of life funeral service officiated by Rev. Ronald Moritz and Kevin Otrhalik. The family requests that in lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Trinity Lutheran School Scholarship fund.

In a letter to his family that was discovered just this week, Butch ended this by asking everyone: “Enjoy every minute you have left on Earth, be kind and generous to all, love your family and cherish your friends, and thank every one of you that meant so much to me and my family”.