Tom Butcher lives in Liberty now, but he was born Dec. 11, 1948, in Flint, Mich. He lived there on a 40-acre dairy farm. He said he was [cointent_lockedcontent]five years old the first time he milked a cow. When he was 7 years old, his dad sold the farm and bought a 180-acre dairy farm in Byron, Mich.

Tom graduated from Byron High School in 1967. While in high school, he played basketball, baseball and football. He graduated from Central Michigan University in Mount Pleasant, Mich., in 1973. He majored in biology and minored in physical education. He received a degree in teaching.

Four days before he graduated from college, he bought 20 cows and rented a 100-acre farm. He ran a dairy there for three years. In 1976, he bought a 65-acre farm. He worked at that farm for 10 years, but in 1985, he sold the cows and started teaching school.

Tom taught at Byron Middle School. He taught seventh- and eighth-grade general science. He also coached girls’ and boys’ varsity basketball and track. He retired in June 2010, after 25 years of teaching.

In 1994, he took a year off from teaching and bought a round-trip ticket to England. He spent 88 days there. He went to London, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, and Stratford-Upon-Avon. He toured Shakespeare’s home, Stonehenge and many other historical places. He rented a car in Switzerland and drove to Paris, France, and Florence, Italy. He said he took hundreds of pictures while in England, and looking at them now brings back so many good memories of the places he toured.

In 1997, Tom married Jackie Dye. They have one daughter and two grandchildren.

Their daughter, Marilee, married to Mark Hendricks, lives in Six Mile. Tom and Jackie wanted to be close to their daughter, son in-law, and grandchildren, Olivia, who is 8 years old, and Gracie, who is 5 years old. In 2011, Tom and his wife moved to Liberty and bought a house.

Tom started riding a motorcycle when he was 15 years old. He owns a 1996 Harley Sportster, which he calls The Iron Horse. He said he likes to ride the motorcycle in the mountains and the backroads of Pickens. He loves to be outside on the open road.

Twice a month, on the first and third Monday, Tom meets at the Pickens Library with a group who likes to write. He is a talented writer, but he said he has no intentions of ever trying to have any of his writings published. He writes for self-satisfaction.

Tom said flowers make everything seem better. He grows day lilies. He has 130 varieties of colors growing in his flower garden. He said his favorite time of the year is spring, because that is when the flowers are in bloom.

Easley resident Carol Baker highlights interesting local residents and helps us get to know more about the fascinating people who call Pickens County home. If you have someone somewhere who you think people should know about, contact us at news@thepccourier.com.[/cointent_lockedcontent]