Hundreds see Ash on his way
As owner of his Taranaki village’s only petrol station, Ashley Heydon had seen almost every resident set off on their travels over the years.
So it was no surprise that hundreds of them should gather on the Oakura BP forecourt to see him off on his final journey.
Heydon, who was known Ash, died on Sunday, aged 93, and Oakura, population 1600, came to a halt for him yesterday.
His coffin sat atop a bait freezer in front of the Heydon Priest BP fuel site shop on State Highway 45 as mourners gathered around it, spilling out on to the grounds of neighbouring businesses. The unconventional funeral venue piqued the interest of passing motorists, while police officers worked to slow traffic.
Heydon’s ‘‘favourite’’ son, Evan, told the crowd to ‘‘loosen up’’, as the day was one of celebration.
He thanked Heydon Priest staff, his father’s caregivers, and the entire village, before outlining his father’s business journey.
Heydon, born in Kaponga, South Taranaki, had taken up an apprenticeship in his teens at Charlie Maxwell’s garage in Okato.
He began building his own car, which he drove to Oakura after passing his advanced trade certificate in 1951.
In Oakura he met Jim Priest and made a successful offer to buy his workshop and adjoining
post agency.
In 1952, Heydon married Nona Fox and the pair began building their business. Priest’s son Ross later bought in, and Heydon Priest was formed.
They secured a contract with McAlpine Brothers, who had come from Auckland to carry logs to their mill on Surrey Hill Rd in Oakura.
With that, they bought their first truck and the transport side of Heydon Priest was established.
After further expansion they eventually secured the general goods licences for much of the coastal area and established a
depot in New Plymouth.
While most of the transport side of the business was later sold, Heydon Priest still exists in the form of a skip bin business and the petrol station.
Heydon’s youngest daughter, Irene, paid tribute to her father’s strong work ethic.
‘‘It was Dad’s lifelong ambition to work until he died. Mostly he loved working, thinking about work and being at work.
‘‘In the past 70 years, many of Dad’s customers and staff have become his working family and a very important part of his life. This was his home.’’
Irene described her father as a ‘‘unique’’ person who loved being different.
‘‘He was unconventional and his sense of humour was irrepressible.’’
Heydon, whose wife died in 1988, lived in a world of black and white, liked only being referred to as Ash, even by his grandchildren, and hated a ‘‘wet fish’’ handshake.
He loved patent leather shoes, wearing ties, eating out, was generous and resilient and deeply proud of Oakura, she said.
‘‘Dad spent his 93 years not just alive, but actually really living. He never wasted a day.’’
She recalled the 60s and 70s as being ‘‘fun years’’ living in Oakura, with her parents often hosting parties filled with locals.
‘‘It may take a village to raise a child, but this village in recent years also raised and supported Ash.’’
Instead of flowers, mourners were asked to carry out a random act of kindness and ‘‘indicate to the receiver this is from Ash’’.