Butch was born to Amy and Knowlton Boyce in Albany, New York, on May 20th, 1936. He was an only child. He graduated from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in 1958 with a degree in engineering and was assigned to his first ship in Honolulu, Hawaii on the Coast Guard Cutter Matagorda where he was Chief Engineer. While stationed in Hawaii, he met the love of his life and married Myrna (Pasion) Boyce on April 19, 1969.
After 11 years in Hawaii, he was posted to Astoria, Oregon where they were blessed with their first son, Dwayne. Three years later, he was posted to Boston, Massachusetts where their second son, Wayne (Bam-Bam) was born. Butch was also assigned to a Coast Guard Station for three years in New Orleans, Louisiana, where he helped develop The Vehicle Tracking System (VTS) for the Mississippi River.
He served on many ships throughout his career in the U.S. Coast Guard, including the USCGC Eagle, Campbell, Winnebago, Spencer, Kukui, Matagorda, Mallow, Ivy, and Cactus. He served as Commander and Captain of many of those ships during which time he developed a deep love and respect for the sea. He retired in 1978 after 20 years in the Coast Guard and relocated with his family from Washington D.C. back to Tigard, Oregon.
He found his second career as an engineering project manager at II Morrow in Salem, Oregon where he designed and put into production the first generation UPS electronic clipboard (DIAD) that all UPS drivers still use today.
Butch was involved in numerous civic activities and clubs, including local school boards, sports coaching, Tigard Kiwanis, and CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate). He was involved in the Mt. Hood Kiwanis Camp, Tigard Safety Town, The Tigard Auto Show, and the Tigard Balloon Festival. He was a strong believer in putting family and community first above all else.
He is survived by Myrna his loving and devoted wife of 50 years, as well as his sons, Dwayne (wife Czarina) and Wayne (wife Daniela), and his four beautiful grandchildren: Alexandre, Cassandra, Isabelle, and Lynnette.
A Memorial Mass will be held at St. Anthony Catholic Church in Tigard on Saturday, June 1st at 2:00pm, with a Celebration of Life reception at the O'Reilly Center immediately after.
The family suggests sending memorial contributions on his behalf to either CASA of Oregon (www.oregoncasanetwork.org) or The Pixie Project of Portland (www.pixieproject.org).
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