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Legislator Profile - Representative Cecil Ash A native of Mesa, Ash had four brothers, all of whom graduated from Mesa High School. Before he entered high school, however, his parents decided to relocate to the family ranch at the confluence of Aravaipa Creek and the San Pedro River in southeastern Arizona. Consequently, young Cecil attended Hayden High School in Winkelman, where a new school building had been recently constructed. When he wasn't attending to his studies, the young cattleman worked the ranch, which supported 400 head of cattle on thirty sections of grazing land. The family's self-described "chief water engineer" was responsible for irrigating 160 acres of alfalfa. Following high school, Ash enrolled at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah. Missing his friends and family, he attended one semester at the University of Arizona before embarking on a mission for his church in 1968. The site of Ash's mission was Paris, France. Of the 150-200 missionaries with whom Ash served in France, two were selected to serve as assistants to the mission president. Ash was particularly impressed with one of those young men, an outstanding leader and genuinely compassionate individual by the name of Mitt Romney. Ash remembers a horrific incident in which Romney was operating as chauffer to the mission president and his wife. Traveling along a curving two-lane highway, an oncoming car crossed the road and hit the Mormon entourage head on. The mission president's wife was killed. Romney was thrown from the car and knocked unconscious. The police officer on the scene wrote on his passport, "Il est mort." ("He is dead.") Of course, the reports of Romney's death were exaggerated, but he was seriously injured and barely survived. Decades later, Ash served on Romney's fundraising committee in New York City for the 2008 presidential campaign, and he is an active supporter of Mitt Romney 2012. Back stateside after completing his mission, Ash returned to BYU to finish school. As graduation approached, he saw a notice posted on a campus bulletin board that Trans World Airlines and Pan American World Airways were scheduling interviews for flight attendant jobs. The airlines interviewed 110,000 individuals nationwide for 1,100 jobs. Ash was one of the 1,100 chosen to fly the friendly skies. Ash traveled to Miami for flight attendant training. He was, he recalls, "one of 12 guys among 140 beautiful women." Before long, he was jet-setting between hot spots like New York City, London and Paris. Ash enjoyed the experience and saw a good deal of the world, but as a faithful member of his church who didn't drink, do drugs or fool around, he began to yearn for something more. Grappling with an uncertain future, Ash was stricken with appendicitis in London and was laid up in St. George Hospital for a week. Lonesome and ill, he decided during that rough week to return to the States and quit his job. He almost didn't have the chance. On the return flight from London to Los Angeles, his appendix burst. The physician who performed the emergency surgery in L.A. declared that it was the worst such condition he had encountered in more than 30 years of practice. Ash returned to the ranch to recover and contemplate his future. On the mend, he took the Law School Aptitude Test. He received a great score and decided to continue his journey through life via law school, from which he graduated in 2½ years. Ash entered private practice in Mesa and, after two years, interviewed for a legal adviser position with Department of Public Safety. DPS interviewed 22 candidates and chose Ash. Sometime later, he asked why he had been hired. "I was told that they wanted to hear all about my exploits as a flight attendant. Were they ever disappointed!" Ash laughs. Following a five-year stint with DPS, Ash turned his sights toward real estate and earned a broker's license, which he held from 1980 to 1993. He purchased a Help-U-Sell franchise, which lost $200,000 over four years. Always the philosophical optimist, Ash looks at the bright side: "I learned so much from that experience that it took me only six months to lose the next $100,000!" During this time frame, Ash and his brothers acquired land in Mesa on which to develop a recreational vehicle park. Entering the business at a time when there was fierce competition among RV facilities in the East Valley, he built a championship golf course at the site. As a consequence, tenants rushed to occupy the park, which filled to capacity while other park operators continued to fight for new residents. In 1990, Ash's career took another sharp turn when he accepted a post with the Maricopa County Public Defender's office, a position he would hold for five years. "That was fun," the ever-charitable Ash recalls. "Being a public defender is like being a paid bishop. You basically have an opportunity to help people with their problems. Some people get involved with drugs or do other stupid things because they undervalue the associated risks. As a public defender, you can help get these people get back on the right track." The experience helped shaped Ash's view on sentencing reform, an issue about which he is emphatically passionate. "The state of Washington is roughly the same size as Arizona, but Washington incarcerates about 18,000 convicts to our 40,000," he observes. "We're turning a blind eye to great developments in the criminal justice system, like effective pre-trial diversion programs. By embracing change, New York was able to reduce both its prisoner population and its crime rate." In 1995, following the death of a brother, Ash left the Public Defender's office to concentrate on management and operation of his RV park. After nearly 10 years operating the facility, Ash was bought out by a national RV company. "They made me the proverbial offer I couldn't refuse," he remembers. As a consequence, Ash retired and then purchased and remodeled three homes on the Pacific coast of Mexico. Ash also volunteered for United Families International (UFI), a 501(c)(3) public charity devoted to maintaining and strengthening the family as the fundamental unit of society. In connection with his volunteer work, he attended a convention in New York City. During his visit to the Big Apple, he was dispatched to the United Nations to lobby on behalf of UFI. The experience was intoxicating, as Ash apprehended the possibilities to make a positive difference on an international stage. One thing led to another, and in January 2005, Ash and his wife, Linda, settled into an apartment on the East Side of Manhattan. For two years he worked as UFI's volunteer representative to the United Nations. He also continued his lifelong work with his church as a liaison to the Chinese branch of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Diving headlong into the dynamic culture of New York, Mr. and Mrs. Ash enjoyed the theater, attended lectures and sampled an unending variety of cuisine. Their time in New York was enhanced by proximity to a son who was completing a medical residency in the city. Once the son's residency concluded in 2007, it was time for the Ash clan to return home. Ash continued his involvement in politics as a volunteer and finance committeeman for the Mitt Romney presidential campaign. When Romney dropped out of the race in February 2008, Ash decided to run for the Arizona Legislature. "[Former Representative] Karen Johnson wanted my wife to run," Ash explains, "but she wouldn't do it, thinking that our kids would be ignored." His wife remains a faithful advisor, however, occasionally reminding Ash that while he may be smarter, she possesses more common sense. It's a charge he doesn't deny. Ash is a true conservative who, like Ronald Reagan before him, promotes local government and believes that decision-making should be decentralized and close to the people. Accordingly, the iconoclastic Republican consistently votes against legislation designed to diminish the authority of mayors and city councils. Last year, for example, he opposed SB 1322 (managed competition; city services), SB 1160 (city sales tax; residential rental), and SB 2153 (municipalities; counties; fire sprinklers; code). Not surprisingly, he was recognized with a Champion of Cities award at last summer's annual conference of the League of Arizona Cities and Towns. Ash is not coy, ambiguous or ambivalent about his future political aspirations. "I have none," he flatly states. He would like to finish what he has started (particularly with respect to sentencing reform), but there is much he'd like to do with the remainder of his life that doesn't involve politics. Ash has been married for 35 years and has five successful children. "I've had a wonderful life," Ash muses. Who could argue? He has enjoyed strong faith, a model family, rich and varied life experiences, a succession of successful careers, international travel and diplomatic work, public service and elected office. Not too shabby for an alfalfa-watering ranch-hand from Winkelman, Arizona. |
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Legislative Bulletin is published by the League of Arizona Cities and Towns. Forward your comments or suggestions to league@azleague.org. |
