TAPS: CAPT (Ret) Alex Butterfield Passes Away at Age 73

Obituary courtesy of https://www.dignitymemorial.com/obituaries/bonita-ca/alexander-butterfield-12459550

Alexander Porter Butterfield Jr. passed away on July 19, 2025, aged 73, after a life marked by travel, distinguished military service and love.

Alex was born on September 21,1951 to Alexander P. Butterfield Sr. and Charlotte M. Butterfield in Las Vegas, Nevada. He and his two sisters enjoyed a childhood full of adventures as they moved from place to place as an Air Force family. His childhood filled him with a sense of the world’s endless possibility that defined his lifetime.

Alex valued knowledge gained both by deep study and lived experience. He attended Duke University where he earned Bachelor’s Degrees in Biology and Psychology. He later received his Master’s Degree in National Security Affairs in the U.S. Naval War College, where he graduated with Highest Distinction. He was a National Security Fellow of Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government.

Alex cared deeply about his family. As a father, he created elaborate stories for his two daughters and taught them to stay curious about the world. Alex met his wife Vanessa in Rome. They spent 25 years happily married, devoted to each other and to cultivating a life filled with cozy moments at home but also with explorations great and small. While his attention to detail can never be replicated, his kindness, humor and sense of adventure live on in the lives he touched.

He was a career naval intelligence officer and also took great pride in this role. He was Assistant Chief of Staff and Director for Intelligence for the U.S. Naval Forces Central Command and U.S. Fifth Fleet. After that, he was Deputy Chief of Staff and Director for Intelligence for the Commander, U.S. Pacific Fleet. He was particularly proud to serve as Commander of the Office of Naval Intelligence. Just prior to retirement he served as Senior U.S. Defense Official, Defense Attaché, and Naval Attaché in Hong Kong and Macau. His decorations include the Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Distinguished Civilian Service Medal, the Defense Superior Service Medal, three Legions of Merit, and the Bronze Star.

After retiring from the military in 2012, Alex was a member of the Defense Intelligence Agency Senior Executive Service. He also served as an Adjunct Professor of Political Science at the University of British Columbia. In this new chapter, he was an invaluable mentor and found deep satisfaction. He prioritized visiting with family and friends, filling them with lasting memories. He was particularly grateful to have time with his beloved mother Charlotte in Coronado, California before she passed. He also read an impressive list of books, watched golf, and meticulously planned travel itineraries.

Though Alex was extraordinarily dedicated to his career, his true calling was in his ability to bring people together through a love of travel, story-telling and humor. While Alex had always loved seeing the world, his sense of purposeful travel became more intense after his cancer diagnosis in 2022. He and Vanessa returned to beloved familiar destinations like Greece, Hawaii and Italy, but also explored new ones (Indonesia, Tahiti, and Austria to name a few) in search of whale sharks, komodo dragons, and a perfect sunset. At what ended up being a final restaurant dinner in Boston in May, a server pulled his daughters aside and told them it was a rare pleasure to see a family that so genuinely enjoyed each other’s company. May that be his most enduring of legacies.

Alex is survived by his loving wife Vanessa and many dear family members: His father Alexander P. Butterfield Sr.(Kim) of La Jolla, California; his sisters Susan Holcomb of Santa Cruz, California and Lisa Buchholz of Newport, Rhode Island; six dear nieces and nephews and their sprawling families; his daughters Claire (Morgan) Bigley of Watertown, Massachusetts and Anna (Simon) Butterfield of Somerville, Massachusetts and their mother Jill Butterfield also of Somerville. He was a proud grandfather of Adele, Violet and Ellis, all of whom he treasured. He will be deeply missed.

Alex will be laid to rest at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Hawaii on Friday, August 22nd at 10:30 A.M. In lieu of flowers, donations in his honor may be made to the Cancer Research Institute https://give.cancerresearch.org/