Keith Ashfield, PC, former
Member of Parliament for Fredericton, died unexpectedly at his home in
Lincoln, NB on Sunday April 22. He was 66 years of age. Left to mourn
are his wife Judy (Morton), daughter Tara (Bruce Ellingwood), and Seth
(Isabelle Rock). He is also survived by his mother Norah
Ashfield-Locke of Grand Manan, and was predeceased by his father John
Ashfield, infant son Joel, and step-father Brenton
Locke.
Keith is survived by his
brother Allan (Dianne Fleet); by sisters Marion (Bruce Fletcher) and
Diane McLaughlin; by sisters-in-law Diane (Danny) Scott, Wendy (Rick)
Palmer; brothers-in-law Tom (Sherry) Morton, Fred (Sherry) Morton, and
Rick Morton. He was predeceased by in-laws Morris and Jean Morton and
Phillip Morton. He will be sadly missed by a great number of nieces,
nephews, grandchildren, loving friends, colleagues, neighbors, and
acquaintances.
Born in North Tay, NB, Keith
grew up in several parts of the province as his father worked on
successive construction projects. Following his father’s
accidental death, Keith settled with friends of the family in Lincoln
and attended Oromocto High School, graduating in 1970. He briefly
attended UNB, then entered the private sector at Auto Machinery Ltd.,
where he began as a stockroom clerk and rose to become Vice-President
and General Manager.
Keith and Judy married in
1972; Tara was born in 1974, and Seth in
1980.
Keith first became politically
involved in the early 1980’s when he was elected to the
then-District 17 School Board. He became a member of the New Brunswick
School Trustees Association, and later served on the Canadian School
Trustees Association.
He first ran in a provincial
general election in 1991 as Progressive Conservative candidate in the
then-Sunbury riding, and lost. In 1999 he tried again, and this time
won his seat as Member of the Legislative Assembly for the riding of
New Maryland. He was appointed Deputy Speaker of the Legislature. He
was re-elected in 2003, and was appointed to the provincial Cabinet as
Minister of Natural resources by Premier Bernard Lord. He won election
for a third time in 2006, and served as a member of the Opposition
until 2008.
In 2008 Keith made the
transition to federal politics and won the general election that year
as Conservative Member of Parliament for Fredericton. He was appointed
Minister of State for ACOA, and later Minister of National revenue, by
Prime Minister Stephen Harper. He was re-elected in 2011, and was
named Minister of Fisheries and Oceans and regional Minister for New
Brunswick.
Keith suffered a heart attack
in September 2012, and underwent major bypass surgery soon after. In
2013 he was diagnosed with cancer, and chose to relinquish his Cabinet
responsibilities. Recovering from his illness, he ran for re-election
in 2015, but was defeated in the Liberal wave that
year.
Keith was defined by the work
he did, and was seldom idle. To find him without a saw or hammer or
paintbrush or government briefing memo in his hand was a rare thing.
The only place he found genuine rest and relaxation was at the
much-loved and often-renovated family camp on Maquapit Lake, where
Keith and Judy spent each summer, visited by multitudes of guests,
acquaintances, and relations. Many people are smiling as they read
this and recall good times at the lake with Keith and
Judy.
Finding retirement not to his
liking, and wanting to continue in public service, Keith decided to
run again in the provincial election scheduled for September 2018.
Earlier this moth he accepted the nomination as PC candidate for
Oromocto-Fredericton-Lincoln, and was actively organizing his election
campaign team in the days before his
death.
New Brunswick and Fredericton
are the poorer for Keith’s passing. Keith’s
political philosophy is neatly encapsulated in a quote from Martha
Gellhorn: “People will say with pride: “I’m not
interested in politics.” They might just as well say,
“I’m not interested in my standard of living, my
health, my job, my rights, my freedoms, my future or any future”.
Political discourse in the province will suffer the loss of his
common-sense approach to issues, his forceful argument, his shrewd
political judgement, and his booming
laugh.
Cremation will
take place. The family will receive friends at the Fredericton Inn,
Main Ballroom on May 6th, 2018 from 1-4
PM.
Bishop’s Funeral Home, Fredericton (458-1885)
have been entrusted with the arrangements. In lieu of flowers,
contributions can be made to the Heart and Stroke Foundation,
Fredericton Hospice House, or a charity of the donor’s
choice.
Our most sincere sympathies to the family and friends of Keith Ashfield 19522018.source
Death notice for the town of: Fredericton, Province: Nouveau-Brunswick