Thomas Michael Butler

Thomas Michael Butler was born on Friday the 13th of December, 1946 in Scranton, PA Mercy Hospital to parents Rose Gavin O'Hara Butler and Arthur James Butler.

He went to St. Paul High School and was known for driving a limousine to school – a perk of his part-time job working for his uncle Robert McGoff's Funeral Home. His nickname was "Beeker" and he played basketball with Joe Biden at the Catholic Youth Center. He acted and sang in school plays.

After school, he was drafted into the Army. He often regaled his daughters with stories of the inanities and extremes of Basic Training. He was nearsighted and slight, and his training for Vietnam focused on harrowing work like tunnel clearing and chemical warfare. He valued the friendships he made there, and like many of his fellow soldiers, he was not eager to see combat. But in one of the remarkable strokes of strange luck that marked his life, on the eve of his transport from a West Coast base to the front line, a freak accident during a game of pickup basketball resulted in such a bad break to his left arm that he was deemed unfit for combat and spent the rest of his Army tour stateside. In a story that he loved to tell, when he came home to Scranton from the Army, he opened his front door expecting a tearful welcome – and instead found a strange family in the living room. His parents had moved and forgotten to tell him.

He was a devoted brother to his three sisters- Nancy, Mary K, and Susan - and to his baby brother, Mark. Yes, he locked Mark in the closet sometimes to make babysitting easier, but he doted on his little brother and covered his little sister's eyes during scary parts in movies. When he was 16 he "borrowed" the family car without permission to rescue his 12-year-old sister Mary K, who was away from home and desperately homesick. After their parents passed away in the 1990s, he dubbed them the "Butler Orphans" and treasured their gatherings. He loved hosting his sister Nancy in Florida for Phillies spring training games.

He graduated from the University of Scranton. In the 1980s he moved south with his young family in search of sun- first to Dallas, and then to Central Florida, where he spent the rest of his life.

As a father of three girls, and stepdad and step-granddad to two more girls, he took the doctrine of "Girl Power" seriously. He understood that heroes like Nancy Drew were important for girls, he told his daughters they could be anything they wanted when they grew up, and he never pressed for feminine dress or decorum. He took his girls fishing and to "Indian Princess" father-daughter camping trips. He was also willing to play Barbies. Over the years he helped his kids with a lot of moves, some of them last-minute. Luckily he could always secure a Penske truck on short notice, find free boxes behind liquor stores, and locate some shady characters who would wrangle a couch up a few flights of stairs for $20.

He took great pride in his step-granddaughter Kaylee, who nicknamed him "Keke" which he hated but grew to love, he referred her as "Weirdo". He taught her how to swim, and they often went to trips to Home Depot just to "smell the lumber". He loved being a kid at heart with her. That playfulness helped him surprise his grandsons with child-pleasing gifts like 100 orange practice golf balls, a bag of 2000 drinking straws, or workbooks with $1 bills hidden in the pages.

Tom started his own on-line golf club business called "Butler Golf Group". He enjoyed fishing at the beach, relaxing in his garage, listening to classic rock, and visiting auctions, flea markets, and eBay. He loved the Philadelphia Eagles, M&Ms, McRib Sandwiches, the Three Stooges, Volkswagen Beetles, Motorcyles, Jeeps, and Tim Russert's Meet the Press, and the color orange. He was struck by lightning and survived.

His step-daughter, Lynn and step-granddaughter, Kaylee had several friends who would visit Tom because they enjoyed his conversations and sense of humor and loved as his own family. His long-term companion, Mary's family referred to him as "Mr. Tom" and said that he was an all around great guy and enjoyed being around him.

Tom passed away at home on July 1, 2021, with his best friend and devoted companion of 30 years, Mary Sadler, at his side. He is survived by stepdaughter Lynn Wright Flamily and step-granddaughter Kaylee Flamily; daughters Erin Butler, Colleen Butler, and Megan Butler; grandsons Arthur "Archie" Tuman, August Tuman, and Frederik Alfes; and siblings Mary K Davis, Susan Barnes and Mark Butler. He was predeceased by his parents, Artie and Rose Butler, and by his sister Nancy Hoban. At his request there will be no visitation, and his ashes will be scattered at the beach where he loved spending time. He was a disabled US Veteran and contributions in his memory can be made to the US Department of Veterans Affairs at 2957 Clairmont Road Suite 200, Atlanta, GA 30329.

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