Raymond Emerson &uot;Muskrat&uot; Butler Sr., 79, died Monday, Jan. 27, 2003, at his residence.

Born on July 28, 1923, in Holland, he was a son of the late Viola Virginia Holland and Walter Thomas Butler, and was the widower of Florence Gayle Butler.

Mr. Butler was the owner and operator of Butler’s Self Service, a farmer, a member of Oakland Christian Church, and was an Army veteran of WW II and the Korean Conflict.

Survivors include his sons, Raymond E. Butler Jr., his wife, Darlene of Suffolk; John Robert Butler, his wife, Avis, of Frisco, N.C.; brothers, Cola M. Butler, Wilber N. Butler, Alton G. Butler, all of Suffolk; half brothers, James A. Jernigan of Eastern Shore; and Dewitt C. Jernigan of Lydlow, Mass.; half sister, Evelyn J. Bradshaw of Suffolk; three grandchildren, John Robert Butler Jr., T. Michael Butler and Misty Lee Butler.

A service in celebration of life will be conducted at 1 p.m. Thursday in Oakland Christian Church by the Rev. Mark L. Burns, with burial in Newman Memorial Cemetery.

The family will receive friends from 7-8 p.m. Wednesday in the R.W. Baker & Co. Funeral Home. Memorial donations may be made to the American Cancer Society, 604 Constance Woods Dr., Suffolk, Va. 23434.