Two years after death, former Sparrow board member interred at Arlington National Cemetery
Correction: This story has been updated to correct James Butler’s fraternal membership to Kappa Alpha Psi.
Nearly two years after the Vietnam veteran's death, family and friends laid James W. Butler III to rest in May at the nation's most prominent military cemetery.
The funeral service brought family, friends and colleagues together once more on May 20 at Arlington National Cemetery outside the nation's capital in Arlington, Virginia, where Butler's cremated remains were interred with military honors.
Butler, who received multiple medals for heroism in Vietnam, died Aug. 7, 2020, of congestive heart failure at 77. He's survived by his wife Rishan, son Duane, daughters Nikia and Charrisse, mother Alice Knight Butler and "second mother" Ida Knight Aikens, along with several relatives.
Family members could not be reached for comment about the recent ceremony.
Butler's initial service in 2020 was limited to close family because of COVID-19. And Arlington National Cemetery also permitted only limited services for a lengthy period of time.
His obituary at Riley Funeral Home called him the "Godfather of Lansing." He served on the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Commission of Mid-Michigan; worked at IBM for 30 years; and served on boards and in positions with the state and various community organizations.
Butler was a member of the Sparrow Hospital Board of Directors for more than 20 years.
Most notably, his spirit in working to diversify boards and offices he served with came from membership with Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Lansing alumni chapter and Sigma Pi Phi "Boulé" fraternities, both serving Black men across the country.
He also served on the National Association of Guardsmen, family friend and colleague Mary Lee Davis said.
"That was so important to James because it is the essence of who is," she said.
From 2020: Longest-serving MLK commission member and community leader James Butler dies at 77
Butler served in the Vietnam War for the U.S. Army as a platoon sergeant with the 2nd battalion, 8th infantry regiment. He earned four Bronze Stars with Oak Leaf Clusters, two Purple Hearts, a Combat Infantry Badge and the Army Commendation Medal.
"I know that he took fire from another force while still protecting his own platoon, and he did that multiple times," said Tolulope Adedokun, who attended the Arlington service.
Awarded for Service: Veteran James W. Butler III honored by VOA
Adedokun is Sparrow's inaugural James W. Butler III Endowed Administrative fellow. Leaders created the program shortly after Butler's death. Adedokun started in January 2021.
She said a man at the service remarked that plots can't be purchased at Arlington, they must be earned by serving in the military and receiving an honorable discharge. Some limited government officials also qualify.
"You've seen some of the Arlington (funerals) on TV, but I think it was it was powerful, and I felt really blessed to just kind of be there," Adedokun said. "He had people from a lot of different backgrounds there, too."
In addition to people from Sparrow Hospital, political and business leaders attended the funeral, along with Butler's family.
Davis spoke at Butler's funeral and noted the detail Rishan Butler put into the programming, tapping into her decades of experience in education.
"In the brochure distributed, she included the symbol of a folding of the flag, which involved 13 steps that ended, 'In God we trust,'" she recalled.
Rishan Butler later called her husband "the newest citizen of Arlington and a neighbor of the 27th president," Davis said. Butler's gravesite is near that of former President William Howard Taft.
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The day's service paid perfect tribute to Davis' friend, she said, because people paid attention to every little detail and put in meticulous work.
Inscribed on his headstone is a quote, which loved ones said in Butler's obituary that he lived by: “If I make it back, I will give back.”
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Contact reporter Krystal Nurse at (517) 267-1344 or knurse@lsj.com. Follow her on Twitter @KrystalRNurse.
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: James W. Butler, 77, laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery
