Ernest Hartwell Ashford Jr.

Ernest (Ernie) Ashford Jr., was born in Keene, New Hampshire, on July 31, 1938. He passed away peacefully September 19, 2015, at his home in Cherokee Village, Arkansas, after a brave, nine-year battle with cancer. He was preceded in death by his father, Ernest H. Ashford and his mother, Sylvia Sawyer Ashford. Survivors include his wife, Sandra Beard Ashford of the home, children Terri (Rob) Landa and Mike (Ginger) Ashford along with grandchildren Robin Landa, Erin Landa, Abigail Ashford, and Sophia Ashford, and sisters Andrea Spear and Linda Ashford (Chris Soule). Ernie graduated from the University of New Hampshire in 1960 and was a member of Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity. He met his future wife Sandra in 1962 at Fort Bliss, Texas, while serving as a lieutenant in the United States Army. He retired as CEO of a credit union in Memphis, Tennessee in 2003. Ernie was a loving husband, father, and grandfather. His favorite pastimes were playing golf and watching the Boston Red Sox. A memorial service will be held at 1 p.m. Thursday, September 24, at the First United Methodist Church in Cherokee Village. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorials be made to the Cherokee Village Methodist Church or to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.