Edmund J. “Butchie” DeCosta, Jr., a native of Newport, R.I., and a popular patron of its neighborhood watering holes, died In Clearwater on Dec. 19, 2023, after an illness. He was 64.
The youngest of six children, he was born in Newport Hospital on May 12, 1959, to Doris (Ibscher) DeCosta and the late Edmund DeCosta. Butchie grew up on Hoppin Road and was a communicant of Jesus Saviour Church. While his attendance at Sunday Mass waned over the years, his love for the church’s annual celebration of the Feast of the Holy Ghost and the Jesus Saviour Bazaar never wavered. He was a competitive bidder at the feast’s fundraising auction and enjoyed chourico grinders and a beer – or two – while playing Bingo at the bazaar every summer.
Butchie attended Newport public schools and graduated in 1977 from Rogers High School, where he played football on Coach John Toppa’s championship teams. His enthusiasm for sports continued into his early adulthood, when he played on The Tavern softball team that competed in the city’s summer league. He was a lifelong Green Bay Packers fan.
He held various job titles during his working years, including furniture salesman, house painter and self-employed painter/wooden furniture refinisher. After moving to Florida he resumed working in sales until his retirement.
Butchie loved to prepare delicious meals and earned a reputation as a skilled cook. In Clearwater he enjoyed relaxing by the pool or walking along Indian Rocks Beach, smoking a stogie and searching for sea glass.
Wherever he was, he especially enjoyed sitting at the bar of a friendly pub or café, watching sports and socializing over beers. In Newport, that would be at Jimmy’s Saloon, Cappy’s Hillside Café or, back in the day, The Tavern. In Clearwater, it was at Buster Brown’s sports pub, where he became part of the family of regulars. They all enjoyed many gatherings and adventures together; more recently, those friends supported and comforted Butch during his illness. His sons want them to know they are very grateful.
Butch leaves his mother, Doris (Ibscher) DeCosta of Middletown; his three sons, Matthew C. DeCosta and Kyle J. DeCosta, as well as their mother, Cindy (Callahan) DeCosta, and Justin T. DeCosta and his mother, Terri Burgess, all of Newport; a sister, Doreen (DeCosta) Murphy of Middletown; four brothers, Bob, Don, Tom and Mickey DeCosta; as well as many cousins, nieces, nephews and friends.
Funeral services were private.
A celebration of Butchie’s life will be held Friday, Jan. 12, 2024, at the Vasco da Gama Hall, 15 Fenner Ave., Newport, from 5 to 9 p.m. Friends in Clearwater are holding a similar gathering this week.
Instead of flowers, his sons ask that anyone who wishes to honor Butch make a memorial donation to the Hillside Charitable Foundation.
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