Women of West leader tireless

BOULDER — People who complain they never have enough time to do all the things they want should meet Jane Butcher.

In addition to being a mother to two stepchildren, two adopted children and three children of her own, she boasts a track record of community service that would win gold if this were an Olympic event.

Butcher is involved in such ventures as the fledgling Women of the West Museum, the Conference on World Affairs held each year at the University of Colorado at Boulder, Mother Jones magazine and the Community Mediation Service.

Though busy with these and a number of other volunteer projects and organizations, she still finds time to go hiking, read, keep fit at the gym, knit and maintain a great network of family and friends.

And Butcher, who’s 55 this August, loves every minute of it.

“I like what I’m doing. It makes me happy. I really like my life and if I didn’t, I’d change it,” she says simply.

“Above all I enjoy working with people, and I enjoy communicating with people. At the same time I’ve learned a lot of skills along the way … and I’ve had a lot of fun.”

Born in New York City, Butcher first came to Colorado in 1962 to attend the University of Colorado-Boulder, from which she graduated with a degree in international affairs.

Although she immediately fell in love with this area, it was another decade before she returned to live in Boulder with her husband, Charlie, an entrepreneur whose family business, started by his grandfather, manufactures floor wax and other cleaning products.

In the intervening years she worked first on a federal poverty program in southern Colorado, then as a social worker in Boston, helping black families find housing, and finally she took a year off to travel overseas.

She married in 1970 and the following year moved to a mountain home in Coal Creek Canyon with Charlie and her step-daughters Kate and Susan. For the next few years family commitments took up most of her time.

Daughter Claudine arrived in 1971; in 1973 the couple adopted two young Korean children, Kimiko and Ben; a year later another daughter Gina was born, and the family was complete with the birth of Andrew in 1980.

In 1976 they moved to Boulder, and with the children starting school, Butcher began getting involved in various educational organizations and helped start the lobby group Parent Council.

In college Butcher had been involved in organizing the annual five-day Conference on World Affairs. She returned as a volunteer helper in 1978 and today is co-chairwoman of the conference with Juli Steinhauer.

Steinhauer says promoting an active community is the bedrock of what Butcher believes. “Bringing people together — that’s her driving force. She is one of those wonderful people who give tirelessly to the community.”

Butcher is enthusiastic about the conference. “The idea is to bring smart people together and have them think in public. It’s a unique opportunity for students to interact and enrich their lives. For me it’s very exciting to be a part of all that.”

A love of jazz and classical music led her onto the board of the Colorado Music Festival for about five years, one year as president. Also in the early 1980s she was a board member of the Chautauqua Association. She also played a big part in starting Spunky Women, a group that honors the achievements of women in the community.

And now she is chairwoman of the board of trustees and president of the Women of the West Museum, a project that started in 1991 and is now searching for a suitable site in the Denver area as well as the funding to build and become a reality.

Butcher calls it a “museum without walls” at present and is proud of their Web site and the many educational programs already organized in the community by the seven full-time staff.

Butcher is also co-chair of the Foundation for National Progress, a San Francisco-based non-profit organization that runs the magazine Mother Jones, a forum for progressive politics, investigative journalism and provocative opinions since 1976.

Closer to home, Butcher trained as a volunteer for the Boulder Community Mediation Service, where she works mostly with parents and adolescents helping them to find common ground and resolve differences. Earlier this year her volunteer work earned Butcher one of the Daily Camera’s Pacesetter of the Year community service awards for which she felt “incredibly honored.”

However, she is the first to share any accolades with those she works alongside. And while she’s quick to applaud the dedication and efforts of those around her, one person is singled out for special praise — her husband.

“Charlie is incredibly supportive,” she says. “He’s very enthusiastic, very positive and always ready to offer advice when asked. He’s quite simply the most generous person I’ve ever met.”

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