Congressman ‘GK’ joined by Bermuda family for special occasion
A former US congressman with family links to Bermuda has described the unveiling of his portrait as one the “greatest honours” of his life.
Meanwhile, relatives from the island have shared their pride after visiting North Carolina to witness the event.
George Kenneth “GK” Butterfield, whose father G.K. Butterfield Sr was brought up in St George's, was delighted to welcome his cousins, Tamara Richardson and her mother Donna Pearman, to the Oliver Nestus Freeman Round House and African-American Museum in Wilson last month.
About 400 people gathered as the portrait, painted by acclaimed artist Simmie Lee Knox, was presented to the lawyer, judge and politician.
“Tammy and her mother came over. It was one of my high honours to have my Bermudian family present,” Mr Butterfield told The Royal Gazette.
“My father remained connected [to Bermuda] as best he could. The only way we could communicate was by telephone or we had to get on an aircraft. We would talk two or three times a year and visit once every two or three years at least.
“The Royal Gazette used to cover our visits. Every time a news reporter asks me, what’s my favourite destination — I say Bermuda and Johannesburg. St George’s is ground zero for the Butterfield family,” he added.
“Being a public figure for many years, I have had a lot of honours. But I can tell you the unveiling of my portrait in my home community was one of the greatest honours of my life, and it will live in my memory for ever.
“Now they want to name the addition to the museum the G.K. Butterfield Library.
“I have donated thousands of artefacts, papers and pictures. All of the artefacts I have collected for the last 50 years — I have donated to the museum.”
As she stood next to George Kenneth “GK” Butterfield, Tamara Richardson’s thoughts travelled beyond Washington and Congress. They went back to Bermuda.
She explained: “My mother, Donna Pearman, is one of GK’s Bermudian cousins. Her father, my grandfather, Norris Pearman and GK were first cousins.
“Norris was a nephew of GK’s Bermudian-born father, Dr George Kenneth Butterfield Sr, who, GK often reminds us, regarded Norris as his favourite nephew.
“Other relatives also attended, including our cousin Carol Jones and members of the Giles family, turning the portrait unveiling into a family reunion.”
Dr Butterfield Sr was born in St George’s in 1900, one of 12 children of tailor James Peter Butterfield, also of St George’s, and Ann Harriett Giles Butterfield, of Tucker’s Town.
Ms Richardson said: “Dr Butterfield Sr left Bermuda at 17 for Florida, where his maternal uncle, George Giles had established himself as a prominent Black businessman.
“He was one of four children from the family of 12 who emigrated to the United States, while eight remained in Bermuda.
“Among them was his sister, Maude Helena Butterfield Pearman, my great-grandmother, whose descendants form our branch of the family here at home.”
Dr Butterfield Sr went on to serve in the US Army during the First World War, he later studied at Shaw University in Raleigh, North Carolina, and earned his dental degree from Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tennessee, before settling in Wilson, North Carolina, the home town of his wife, Addie Lourine Davis Butterfield.
Ms Richardson said: “Dr Butterfield Sr went on to become a respected dentist and civic leader, and in 1953 became Wilson's first Black elected official.
“His commitment to public service would find expression in the next generation.”
Ms Richardson added: “For our family, the weekend was less about GK’s distinguished career and more about witnessing how far one branch of our Bermudian family had come.”
“Seeing the portrait in photographs was one thing. Standing beside it, with GK and my mother was something else entirely, a moment in which generations seemed to come together,” Ms Richardson reflected.
Family connections across the Atlantic have remained strong, sustained through visits, shared memories and relationships spanning generations.
Ms Richardson said: “The names and stories are too numerous for one article. Together, though, they reveal a family tradition of service, enterprise and community expressed across generations and on both sides of the Atlantic.
“Particularly precious are GK’s remaining first cousins on the Butterfield side: Aileen Wright, aged 104, and his oldest living first cousin; Marilyn Darrell Smith; and Elaine Darrell Bean.
“For my mother and me, there was something bittersweet in seeing the contribution our Bermudian family made to Wilson while wondering what Bermuda lost as that branch took root elsewhere.”
She added: “Standing in Wilson with GK, his portrait behind us, connected my grandfather to Dr Butterfield Sr, my mother to her American cousins, and another generation of our family to a story that began in Bermuda more than a century ago.
“Within our family, GK is more than the keeper of its history; he is our archivist.
“As the youngest of 28 first cousins in the Butterfield clan, GK heard much of that history directly from his father.
“He carries names, dates, relationships, migrations and stories that my generation could never recover simply by searching for records or building a family tree.
“Somewhere along the way, he appears to have passed the family-history bug on to me.”
Ms Richardson continued: “I returned from Wilson thinking about leadership, family and the responsibility of preserving both.
“Colleagues, friends and members of the community spoke about GK’s unwavering commitment to Wilson, regardless of how far his career took him.
“Titles tell you what someone did; the testimony of a community tells you how they did it.”
“I think it’s natural for people to want to continue family traditions,” Mr Butterfield said on keeping in contact with his wider family.
“I’m the last standing family member with the Butterfield name, I don’t have any sons.
“At the end of my life that will be the end of the Butterfield name, but certainly not the end of the Butterfield family.”
Dr Butterfield Sr emigrated to the US from Bermuda when he was 17. He was a dentist and was elected to the city council in Wilson, North Carolina in the 1950s. He was the first Black person to be an elected official in eastern North Carolina since the Civil War ended in 1865.
On the impact of his father, Mr Butterfield said: “He had a profound influence, without question.
“Seeing him having an interest in becoming an elected official transferred to me.”
The 79-year-old, who stood down from congress in 2022, after representing North Carolina's First Congressional District for more than 18 years, always tried to help Bermuda.
In the early stages of the Covid pandemic, he helped secure the release of a container of high-protection N95 masks after US president Donald Trump slapped an export ban on personal protective equipment.
Mr Butterfield said: “Throughout my life I have tried to promote the best for Bermuda. When I was in the Congress, I was known as Bermuda’s ambassador.
“I would always advocate for Bermuda, and I was always an advocate for the reinsurers. I have known most of the Premiers for the last 25 years and I have had pretty good relationships with them.”
As of 2026, Mr Butterfield remains working as a federal lobbyist and acts as an adviser to US companies on how to navigate the political landscape.
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