Ray Butler

Greetings, I am Ray Butler, born Raymond Butler and I have not forgiven my parents for that. If we believe we are the product of our environment, I am the product of being born in Bronx, New York, and raised in "rural" South Carolina. Who am I kidding, if you got more than 3 miles from the State House back then, you were in "rural" South Carolina. After a short stint in New Orleans, LA, and back in SC, I joined the Army and found a home for the next twenty years. During these years I completed a BS in Professional Aeronautics and a Masters in Education. I retired as a Chief Warrant Officer 4, working as an Instructor Pilot in UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters and Rotary Wing Instrument Examiner. I lived (3 or more years) in Georgia, Texas, Schwaebisch Hall, Germany, and Landstuhl, Germany with deployments to Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Northern Europe, Hungary, Bosnia Herzegovina, Italy, France, Spain, Croatia, and Iraq. I followed up my military retirement by working for UPS for almost 20 more years as a flight training center instructor and supervising instructional technologist. Most people don't realize that UPS has enough planes to qualify as the ninth largest airline in the world, operating international flights 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year except Christmas day. During my tenure at UPS, I visited every continent except Antarctica and Australia. I visited Alaska many times, spending weeks at a time there. So why all this dribble about me and my history? I wanted you to know two things about me; first, I have traveled extensively and as a pilot, I understand the complexities of travel and the detailed planning required to make the journey smooth and with minimal worries, second, I have lived in these countries and gotten to know the people, customs, and idiosyncrasies of daily life within them. There is a world of difference between someone who has vacationed for a short time in a country or read up on a country, and someone who lived there for months and years. Upon my last retirement, I decided I was not finished professionally and decided to leverage my love of travel and unique understanding of domestic and international locations to help others enjoy these countries I love. Now, three years into this iteration of Ray, I have enjoyed the opportunities to help many travelers get the most out of their vacations to Europe, Asia, and most of all Alaska. My major specialties revolve around serving the military (active and retired) and airline employees because I understand the lifestyle and benefits available to them. I also specialize in Alaska and Europe because of my extensive experience traveling and living there. I also have extensive experience traveling Europe with family who have mobility issues. Don't let a wheelchair or walker stop you from going to Europe. It is harder and takes more planning to get around but it is absolutely possible, I have references on this one, my mother. It is my hope you will trust me enough to have a conversation about your dreams of that next perfect vacation, I guarantee it will be time well spent. If you are considering a vacation to Alaska or Europe whether you have military or airline affiliation or not, contact me and put me to work finding that perfect fit for you and your family. I look forward to working for you.