Building a Foundation
Bill and Sue Butler established the Foundation to give back to the Northern Kentucky community, and to inspire others to do likewise.
Bill was born in Covington, Kentucky to a large, hardworking family. He knew from a young age that his parents expected him to be financially independent by age 18. With that goal in mind, he took his first job delivering newspapers at 10 and worked several jobs to pay his own high school and college tuition.
Sue was born in Fort Thomas, Kentucky, one of six children of Alice and Edward Lutz. She has always been close to her brothers and sisters, and growing up in a loving home taught her early on to prioritize relationships and spending time with people she loves.
Bill and Sue married in 1968. At that time, Bill had little money but BIG DREAMS – for himself and his family, for the Northern Kentucky region, and especially for his hometown of Covington. His vision and determination led him to start a small construction company and to make a promise: when he reached his business and financial goals, he would help other hardworking people who were struggling on their own road to success.
Building the company was risky, especially in the early years. Bill recounts days when he would come in from working a bulldozer on a job site, change into a business suit, and rush out to meet a commercial banker about financing a loan. Sometimes he had to negotiate by phone so the banker wouldn’t know he was so young. Over the next 50+ years, Corporex scaled up to meet the young entrepreneur’s dream.
a City's transformation
In the early 1980s, Covington was listed as the most blighted city in the United States. Corporex began the transformation of Covington and its neighboring river cities when it built the RiverCenter Towers — the first high-rise office buildings in Northern Kentucky. From there the Company developed the Embassy Suites, the Marriott hotel, Madison Place, Domaine de la Rive, and eventually the Ascent at Roebling’s Bridge. The Covington skyline as it stands today is a reflection of Bill Butler’s vision for the community.
Currently, Corporex controls over $1 billion of real estate investments in over 20 major markets across the United States. Its affiliates and subsidiaries include Corporex Capital, Commonwealth Hotels, Five Seasons Family Sports Clubs, Corporex Development & Construction Management, Corporex Management & Leasing and Kings Hammer.
Today, the Corporex Family of Companies supports The Butler Foundation’s work.
