Posted on 11/20/2019
Lee Earle Joseph Ashman, 90, of Vienna, VA, passed away on November 6, 2019, at home surrounded by family. A funeral service will be held at Saint Catherine of Siena Catholic Church on Tuesday, November 12, 2019 at 10:00 am. Burial will take place at a future date at Quantico. Visitation will be held at Adams-Green Funeral Home, 721 Elden Street, Herndon, VA 20170 on Monday, November 11, 2019 from 5-8 pm. Adams-Green will be handling the funeral arrangements. Lee was born in Norwalk, CT to William Earle and Lucy Smith (Hall) Ashman on September 27, 1929. He attended Norwalk High School and was appointed to the United States Naval Academy. Immediately after graduation in 1952 he was assigned to the USS Remey, en route to Korea, as Electrical Officer. Six months later, he became Engineering Officer and a Command Duty Officer. Upon returning to Conus in 1954, he was assigned as XO and Navigator on the ice-reinforced hydrographic ship USS Pursuit to lead a convoy of cargo ships into uncharted Arctic waters north of Hudson and Repulse Bays for installation of large DEWLINE components. The assignment included underwater demolition of obstacles and creation of navigation charts, and was soon followed by detailed charting of eastern Aegean waters for SSBN positioning. Returning to New York City in 1958 to marry the love of his life, Rita Marie Todd, daughter of Dr. and Mrs. Joseph White Todd, he was assigned to the INSMAT at Long Island. He then attended PG school for a year and was subsequently assigned to OPNAV, where he worked directly with the CNO (Adm. Arleigh Burke) on project briefings and on Navy inputs to the National Security Council. He subsequently served in the Atlantic and Mediterranean as XO/Navigator on the Destroyer Escort USS Dealey and as CO of the Minesweeper USS Dash. He transferred back to Washington as a Lieutenant Commander to serve at the Naval Command Systems Support Activity in 1963 where he became deeply involved in development and support of the tactical programming centers, strategic operations control centers and NATO. Accepting a job offer to continue working in the new field, he resigned from active duty and transferred to the Naval Reserve, teaching computer science. He subsequently worked in engineering and management positions, and retired from the Naval Reserve into the USNR-R in 1982. Retiring from business in 1990, he worked for the Catholic Diocese of Providence, RI, and served as Pastoral Associate and Business Manager at St. Barnabas Church in Portsmouth, RI. His assignments included youth ministry, teaching, pastoral musician, and choir. In 1996, Lee and Rita were recruited to fill teaching positions at Annunciation Academy in Vienna, VA, where they served for 6 years. He subsequently founded and taught at a small Catholic School, Good Shepherd Academy in Manassas, VA, up until the time of his stroke in July, 2013. Lee greatly enjoyed arranging Naval Academy tours for his students to pass along the esprit de corps and pursuit of excellence found there. Lee was a Third Order Benedictine, member of MENSA, NRA and the VFW. He enjoyed teaching and playing music, running, navigating and most of all, spending time with his family. Lee is survived by his wife, Rita of Vienna, his children, Therese (Janryk) Bukowski, Rita Hughes, Bill (Jen), Mike (Stacey), Mary (Charles) Healey, Christine Ashman, his 22 grandchildren Christopher (Andrea) Bukowski, Megan (Mike) Reese, Eryka (John) O'Herron, Alexandra Bukowski, Nicholas (Anne) Bukowski, Sarah (Dan) Bales, Tim (Jess) Hughes, Kevin (Rachel) Hughes, Nathan Hughes, Joey Hughes, Michael, Matthew and Grace Ashman, Hayden, Ryan and Ian Ashman, Patrick, Mary Kate, John, Lucy and Lillie Healey, Ashley Masisak, and his 26 great grandchildren, Mia, Sebastjan, Gavin, Jake, Emma Bukowski, Will, Elisabeth, Kate, Finn, Sophia, and Luke Reese, Cecilia, Jude, Simon, Vincent, and Samuel O'Herron, Madeline, Amelia, Gabriella, Thea, and Henry Bukowski, Jonathan, Angelina, and Charlotte Bales, and Ava and Harper Masisak. He is preceded in death by his parents, William and Lucy Ashman, and his sister, Margery Leonard. In lieu of flowers, Memorial donations may be made to Cardinal Newman Academy, 8706 N. Chesterfield, VA 23235 www.cardinalnewmanacademy.org. The family wishes to extend their gratitude to nurses Mary and Harouna, aides Marion and Ruel, and Dr. Alan Dappen for their loving and devoted care, and to Msgr. EJ Filardi, Father Jerry Pokorsky, Father Alexander Drummond, and Father Stephen McGraw.
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