Tom Ashley

June 10, 1949 - August 19, 2022

Tom died on August 19 from complications of Parkinson’s disease, the effects of which he fought valiantly for 16 years. He continued to go skiing, rock climbing, hiking and boogie boarding and played tennis and bridge for many years after his diagnosis primarily because of his wonderful friends who looked after him and picked him up when he fell down. He very much looked forward to outings and trips with his friends and they contributed greatly to his happiness.

Tom was born in Vienna, Austria to Frances and Eric Ashley. His family immigrated to California and settled in Hillsborough when Tom was two years old. He attended Lick Wilmerding High School in San Francisco and went on to Columbia University in New York City where he earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics and a Master’s of Business Administration. He worked for Chase Manhattan Bank in New York for a few years before returning to California to work for the Federal Reserve Bank. He spent most of the next 35 years of his career at the Bank of America.

Tom met his wife, Lois, on a Sierra Club hike from Tennessee Valley to Muir Beach. There he spontaneously invited her for a glass of wine at the Pelican Inn. They were married at the Falkirk House on Memorial Day in 1981 and moved to Mill Valley where their son Brian was born.

Tom loved to volunteer. He was on the Mill Valley School Board for eight years, the Mountain Play Board for 12 years and the Scott Valley Swim and Tennis Club Board for 25 years. He also coached almost every baseball, soccer and roller hockey team his son played on. He was an excellent cook and loved feeding people, a skill his son Brian developed as well. Tom valued sitting down to dinner as a family every evening and prided himself on preparing home cooked meals even after long days of working and commuting. No family celebration or holiday was complete without one of Tom’s Viennese almond flour cakes. Everyone was thrilled when he brought his famous chocolate chip cookies to potlucks.

Tom was a kind and gentle soul, quiet and a deep thinker. He rarely had a bad word to say about anyone. He had a dry sense of humor which was enjoyed by many. Tom was a wonderful husband, father, brother and friend and the world is a better place for his having been here. We all miss him terribly.

He leaves behind his wife Lois, son Brian (Julia), sister Peggy (Jeff), grandsons Rowan and Spencer, granddaughter Hannah, two nieces Eva and Christine (Ricard), a nephew Andy (Jenny), cousins Mary (John) and Jim (Shirley) and six grandnephews and a grandniece.

In lieu of flowers, please consider sending a contribution to Kiddo or The Mountain Play Association, two organizations that Tom believed in and supported.