Wife, Mother, Spy: An Extraordinary Life Filled with Ordinary Days

***This lecture is sponsored by the IWP IAFIE Student Chapter***

About the Lecture:

In her book, Wife, Mother, Spy: An Extraordinary Life Filled with Ordinary Days, Ms. Ann Butler explores the complexities of balancing a career in the Agency’s Clandestine Service while raising five children with a “non-tandem” spouse. This event will offer students unique insights into the realities of operational tradecraft, specifically the discipline required to maintain work-life balance as a wife and mother while navigating often risky high-stakes overseas field assignments as a 24/7 undercover CIA spy.

About the Speaker:

Ann Elizabeth Butler was born in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan
and grew up in Endicott, New York with her parents and three
brothers.

At Union-Endicott High School, Ann was editor of the yearbook,
played clarinet in the marching and concert bands, often went to
Greek Peak with the ski club, and was active in the French and Key
Clubs.
She majored in Economics at the University of Notre Dame,
spending her sophomore year abroad in Angers, France at the
Université Catholique de l’Ouest. After graduation, Ann received a
Rotary Scholarship to study in Belgium and obtained a Master’s in
International Trade from the Université de l’Etat à Mons.

In 1986, Ann began a 27-year-long career as an undercover officer
in the Directorate of Operations at the Central Intelligence Agency.
Early on, while working full time, Ann attended evening classes at
George Washington University and earned an MBA with a
concentration in International Business.
Before moving to Washington, DC to start her new career, Ann met
Joseph Potak, to whom she has now been married for 37 years. They
have five children together: Claire, Kyle, Eric, Alexis, and Katrina.
Ann’s work with the CIA required her family to move every few years
to a different city, country, or continent. Her mission was simple -
recruit spies and collect intelligence, to help protect the United
States.
Ann Butler has spent her life striving to find the balance between
being a wife, a mother, and a spy. Her story is full of both very
challenging as well as very rewarding moments. Now, she has
written them all down.
With her memoir, Wife, Mother, Spy, she wants others to read her
story and know that although it’s not easy - they too can have it all.

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