Correspondent photo / Brandon Cantwell James Butler Jr., 58, of Lake Milton, served in the U.S. Air Force partly because his uncle and brother also served in the Air Force. He was a mechanic and spent 27 years in the service.

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James Butler Jr.

FAMILY: wife, Michele

LAKE MILTON — For James Butler Jr., who always loved tinkering with machines on local farms growing up, a mix of family and educational pursuit motivated him to join the Air Force.

“My brother and uncle were both Air Force, and they kind of pushed me toward it for the educational opportunities and the schooling that came with it,” Butler said. “And I had a lot of very good mechanical schools I went to to be a mechanic. I don’t want to say family tradition, but I’m the third one.”

Butler said he went to the Air Force recruiter seeking a mechanic’s position, where luckily enough, one was open. He completed his basic training at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas.

From there, he immediately was sent to Mansfield Lahm Air National Guard Base in Mansfield to work on various types of equipment, ranging from aircraft towing equipment to bulldozers and road graders, and to repair and build runways.

Butler briefly spent time in Ramstein, Germany, in 2002, just months after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. While he wasn’t going to the Middle East, Butler said he felt conflicting emotions about leaving home.

“I wanted to stay home. I was not married yet. But I said, ‘Man, do I go over there and help with the cause or do I stay home and protect my parents, you know?’ Even in the airports and just walking around, I was paranoid. I was. It made me paranoid of everyone,” Butler said. “Although you’re very well trained for it, it’s still very stressful and it’s emotional. It’s very emotional because you have to focus on what you need to do, but then you have to maintain safety. You can’t be this high all the time. You have to come down a little bit.”

They were constantly briefed about situational awareness and watching their comrades’ backs while on base, Butler said.

Butler noted changes that happened in foreign countries following the attacks, mainly concrete barriers surrounding U.S. facilities such as the post office.

“There were concrete jersey barriers where there never used to be, and it was just sad. It was sad to see that this is what it had come to with the terrorist attacks, that there were concrete barriers everywhere,” Butler said. “You could no longer pull up by the United States post office right there in Germany, you know, on Ramstein.”

Butler said the Air Force was on Force Protection Condition Charlie for several years after the Sept. 11 attacks, which is the fourth highest level of identification and recommended preventative action toward terrorist threats against U.S. personnel and facilities.

From 2002 to 2010, Butler said he continued his maintenance training in Mansfield until a new Red Horse unit was created, serving as part of its 200th squadron.

Butler spent seven months in Iraq and Afghanistan supporting military operations there. While he spent enough time in Afghanistan to receive a campaign medal, Butler explained they wouldn’t give two campaign medals on the same tour.

Butler said he was approached about going to Afghanistan because of his age, rank and the need for senior leadership. He said he ultimately went because he felt the need to do so.

“I felt it was my duty,” Butler said. “And I’m very proud to have gone.”

Butler said he didn’t want to retire, but he ultimately knew it was time and the military was planning to retire him if he didn’t do so himself.

“The camaraderie was by far the No. 1 thing that I enjoyed in the service. I made some friends. That was the best part. And then I just had to build. I just built,” Butler said.

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