Jack ButcherThe family of Industrial Bolt & Supply founder John T. “Jack” Butcher, Jr. announced this week that he passed away in his Browns Point, Washington home. Butcher had celebrated his 79th birthday one month earlier.
Butcher was born in Tacoma, Washington in 1940. A graduate of Stadium High School who also attended Olympic Community College and the University of Oregon, Butcher worked for the Northern Pacific Railroad and as a carpenter. He also cycled through several different sales positions before landing on the vocation he termed “the winner,” industrial sales with Curtis Industries.
In 1977, Butcher struck out on his own, establishing Industrial Bolt & Supply, Inc., then based in Federal Way, Washington. IBS, as it was quickly known, started with two employees and grew to a workforce of over 40, including sales personnel spread across seven states in the Western U.S. The business was sold in 2007, when Butcher and his wife, Linda, retired.
Butcher took on other leadership roles within the industrial distribution industry, including a long tenure on the board of the Specialty Tools & Fastener Distributors Association (STAFDA). He also was an active member of the local Rotary Club. With that organizationm, he engaged in philanthropic work aimed at eradicating polio in Ethiopia. Butcher himself was afflicted with the illness as a child.
Butcher is survived by Linda, his wife of 55 years, as well as his daughter, Michelle St. John; son Derek Butcher (Mary Murray); stepdaughter, Bonnie McGregor (Carrie Lynn Mooney); two brothers and five grandchildren. He also leaves behind his greatly loved dog, Puddles.
