Robert Fred Butterfield Obituary
Robert Fred Butterfield, age 71, of Columbia, Maryland passed away on Wednesday, July 17, 2024.
A receiving of friends for Robert will be held Saturday, August 3, 2024 from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM at Witzke Funeral Homes Inc., 5555 Twin Knolls Road, Columbia, MD 21045, followed by a celebration of life at 1:00 PM.
Robert Fred Butterfield, of Columbia, Maryland, born June 14, 1953, in Boston, Massachusetts, son of the late Robert W. Butterfield and Adele Butterfield, née Solimine, of Belmont, Massachusetts, passed away peacefully on July 17, 2024. Bob grew up in Belmont and graduated from Belmont Senior High School in 1971. He attended Boston College, graduating in 1975 with a degree in Political Science, and did graduate work at George Washington University.
Bob was a lifelong U.S. government employee, starting his career with the then U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service on the Maine-Canada border, followed by the Department of State. The majority of Bob's government service was as a civilian employee of the Department of Defense, Department of the Army. He worked at the U.S. Army Armaments Research and Development Center at Picatinny Arsenal, Dover, New Jersey. Bob was then employed for almost 25 years at the U.S. Army Research Laboratory, Adephi, Maryland as a Security Specialist/Supervisory Security Specialist, and the Deputy Chief, Intelligence and Security. He ended his career with the newly established U.S. Army Cyber Command, Fort Meade, Maryland, where he was the Chief, Security Division, and its first Command Security Manager.
Bob is survived by his devoted wife of 29 years and lifelong friend for over 60 years, Nagako "Nana" Butterfield, née Isobe, and their beloved daughter Kay Butterfield, of Columbia, Maryland. He is the son-in-law of the late Shigeharu and Kuniko Isobe, of Yokohama, Japan, and friend and brother-in-law of the late Michitake "Mitch" Isobe. He is also survived by his Aunt Eva Cardile, née Solimine, of Nahant, Massachusetts and Uncle Conrad Solimine of Methuen, Massachusetts, plus over a hundred cousins to include JoAnne Ludwig, née Cardile, of Middleton, Massachusetts, John Cardile of Middleton, Massachusetts, Janet Cunningham, née Cardile, of Belmont, Massachusetts. He is also predeceased by his cousin Judith Cardile. Bob is also survived by the ever loyal Cori the Corgi.
Bob enjoyed yearly trips to Japan to visit his wife's family and to visit various areas of Japan. He also enjoyed soccer, basketball, and other sports with his beloved daughter. After his retirement in 2015, his interest in radios was revived and he enjoyed discovering and listening to signals broadcast from around the world, but most of all, he enjoyed spending time with his wife in retirement.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Bob's memory to the Lymphoma Research Foundation or other cancer research organization.
