Passed Away: June 20, 2006

Reprint from vt-world.com

61, U.S. Air Force retired, passed away in the comfort of his home and family on June 20. Born in Warrington, England, on March 10, 1945, he was the son of the late Fred and Rebecca (Sharman) Bilbrey. On Sept. 20, 1970, he married the former Gloria Labbe in Barre. Butch was a 1963 graduate of Barberton (Ohio) High School and immediately entered the U.S. Air Force. He served first as a personnel specialist and later as an air traffic control technician, retiring from the military as Master Sergeant in 1983. Moving to Vermont that same year, Butch was employed by the city of Montpelier where he worked as the records clerk until his retirement on May 1, 2006, due to declining health. Butch was a proud member of the Fellowship of Alcoholics Anonymous since 1993. Butch is survived by his wife of 36 years, Gloria Bilbrey of Duxbury; their children, Christine M. Bilbrey of Duxbury and Staff Sgt. Adam J. Bilbrey, U.S. Army, currently serving in Iraq; a daughter-in-law, Wendy Bilbrey; and two grandchildren, all of Northfield; a brother, Paul Hershberger of Crawfordsville, Ind.; his father-in-law and best friend, Edwin Labbe of Barre; three sisters-in-law, Ann Labbe-Merrill of Barre, Jacklyn Spence and her husband Tom of Moretown, and Michelle Gingras and her husband Brian of Barre; as well as nieces, nephews and extended family. He was predeceased by a son, Brian E. Bilbrey, and his mother-in-law, Doris C. Labbe.