Owen M. "Bud" Field Jr.

Owen M. “Bud” Field Jr., 97, of Shelbyville, passed away peacefully Wednesday, November 2, 2022, surrounded by his wife and children.

He was born May 29, 1925 in Saginaw, Michigan.   He is survived by his wife of 72 years, Joan (Comstock) Field, by his son, Owen M. Field III and wife, Myra, of Chicago, Illinois; daughter Gina Towler and husband, Jon, of Snellville, Georgia; grandchildren, Alison Rockmann and husband, Kevin, Thomas Towler and wife, April, Daniel Towler and wife, Katy, and Anastasia Field and partner, Nichole McCann; great-grandchildren, Naomi Rockmann, Blake Rockmann, Pearson Towler, Hagen Towler, Owen Towler, Dottie Towler and Juliana Radtke.

Bud was preceded in death by his parents, Owen M. Sr. and Thyrsa J. (Grove) Field; and brothers, James and Robert Field.

He enlisted in the US Navy during World War II and received his diploma in absentia from Jefferson High School in Lafayette.  He served as a hospital corpsman in the Pacific theatre. He was involved in several island landings, among them the invasion of Iwo Jima.   

After the war, he returned to Indiana. With the GI Bill, he attended Purdue University, then transferred to Franklin College where he received his Bachelor’s of Science.  At Franklin College, Bud met and courted his future bride, Joan. They married in 1950.

He devoted his adult life to Joan and to working and managing the family farm.

Community service was important to Bud. He was a member of the Mount Gilead Baptist Church, where he sang in the choir, taught Sunday school, served as a trustee, and deacon. He was a firefighter with the Marietta Volunteer Fire Department; a member of the school board for the Southwestern Consolidated School District; and, due to his love of local history, he volunteered with the Shelby County Historical Society.

Bud had many interests and talents. He enjoyed reading, working on crafts in his workshop, and playing euchre with family and friends. Travel was also important to Bud. He cherished the time spent traveling overseas with each grandchild.

Bud was a wonderful husband, father, father-in-law, grandfather, great grandfather, and friend.

Visitation will be from 4 to 7 pm, Wednesday, November 9, 2022, at Freeman Family Funeral Homes and Crematory, Carmony-Ewing Chapel, 819 S. Harrison St. in Shelbyville.

Funeral services will be at 11 am, Thursday, November 10, 2022, at the funeral home, with Pastor Bryan Trotter officiating.
Interment will be at Miller Cemetery in Shelby County.

Memorial contributions may be made to Mount Gilead Baptist Church, 4449 S. Smithland Road, Shelbyville, Indiana 46176.

Online condolences may be shared with Bud’s family at www.freemanfamilyfuneralhomes.com.