Richard Bates Ashley was born on May 18th,1944 to Mary Beth Bates Ashley and Henry D. Ashley in Warrensburg, MO. He was the first born of 4 children including sister Mary Beth, brother John and sister Kathy. His parents had a rough time during the late 40s and early 50s with four mouths to feed and they divorced in 1954. Richard and sister Mary Beth were sent to live with their grandparents, Fletcher and Naomi Bates on their farm near Higginsville, MO. He had fond memories of his time at the farm and loved his grandparents dearly.
Mary Beth Ashley remarried in 1960 to Clyde Rehmer and Richard moved back with the family to a farm near Cole Camp, MO. He graduated from Cole Camp High School in 1962 at the top of his class and was involved in many extracurricular activities. It was at this time when he met Carol Donna Eckart and the young couple decided to marry in 1963. They moved to Independence, MO. and had the first two of his three children, Richard and Daniel.
Richard first found a job with a drilling rig company, Lane Western in Kansas City. He then found a better job with Woodward and Clyde, a company headquartered in Chicago. In 1971 his new employer asked him to move his young family to Ludington, MI. and begin work on a hydroelectric dam. He made lifetime friends with fellow employees, and their home became everyone’s home.
In 1973 the family was moved to Canton, GA. More friendships were forged and a new addition came to the family, his youngest child, Mathew. Woodward and Clyde had many jobs for Richard all over the United States and around the world. He was away from his family for months at a time, which put a strain on his marriage and contributed to his alcoholism. The family was moved to St. Louis, MO., Bay City, TX and Enfield, CT. Richard had established himself as the go to if you needed something done right. While his growing family was nesting in these various locations, Richard flew all over the world to keep projects on track.
By the early 80s, Richard’s drinking had to be delt with and his friends and family got him into rehab. He kicked the bottle in 1981 and never drank again. Unfortunately, his marriage didn’t withstand the burden and they were divorced in 1983.
During his life, he always had two passions; cooking, and fishing and hunting. He was an avid quail hunter well into his 40s. In 1985, Richard discovered Kreb’s Mobile Home Park on Truman Lake. In 1987 he bought the property across the road from Kreb’s and this became his new home base. His love for the Ozarks and the friendships he made there brought him back whenever he was able.
Richard has fished on 6 of the 7 continents, preferring freshwater fishing. In his travels he became enamored with Southeast Asia and had several fishing buddies living in Thailand. He decided this is where he wanted to retire. It was at this time when he was introduced to his second wife, Watinee Thisamee. They were married in 2007 and bought a home in Udon Thani, Thailand. The couple decided to move back to Missouri in 2022 and bought a home in Bolivar, MO. Very soon after, Richard’s health took a turn for the worse. He developed shortness of breath from a tumor in his right lung. He lived with this for a couple of years, feeling better for a time but his condition worsened and the tumor caused inflammation throughout his body which caused several mini strokes and finally his kidneys began to fail. He died on Oct. 4th, 2023 surrounded by his loved ones. Richard is survived by his wife Watinee, his sons and his sister Kathy Gayton and family.