Corey Blake Ashford

Corey Blake Ashford, beloved son of Joyce Blankenship and Randall Ashford, passed away at home in his sleep on Monday, July 5, 2010. His memory will always be cherished by his grandparents, numerous aunts, uncles, cousins, and many friends. Corey – an intelligent, sensitive, spiritual, and caring young man – was born in Richmond, Virginia on June 7, 1991, and raised in Alexandria. He graduated in 2009 from T.C. Williams High School, where he worked on the school newspaper. A person of deep feelings and awareness of others, he was highly empathetic. He would share with others his insights about the world in a personal, intimate way. While deeply introspective, he could see the bigger picture in many situations and had a unique ability to see the connections between the personal and the universal. In sharing his thoughts and feelings he could be disarmingly frank, although rarely in a highly public way. His family was a large part of his life. He spent many summers with his grandparents in Williamsburg, VA; much of his early life with his grandmother, great-grandmother and extended family in Huntington, WV and traveled with his father and mother for family activities, holidays and special events across the country. He was comfortable with his older cousins and tolerated the childish antics of his younger ones. Although he was an only child, you wouldn’t have known it. He had many close friends that shared his interests and passions. He really loved his trip to Great Falls, or Fredericksburg to work on music, or going to poetry readings, hanging out with friends at home playing his guitar and listening to music. Corey had a deeply felt concern for those who were marginalized in society; the homeless, the unemployed, mentally ill or abused. From early childhood he would ask why more couldn’t be done to help people in need have homes and livelihood, and was unfailingly generous, sympathetic, and nonjudgmental with the less fortunate he encountered in daily life. His writing showed his impatience with a society that was willing to spend billions for war but could not make the effort to lift people from poverty. He demonstrated unusual creativity in his writing, whether poetry, journalism or music. He was also constantly taking pictures, whether of snowfalls – he loved the snow – or cars of every shape and kind. Corey never drove a car, but aspired to own a 1964 Mustang. When walking or driving by interesting cars he would often insist on stopping and snapping pictures of them, and he collected models of those that intrigued him. All animals and pets were appealing to him. He liked the odd and quirky, and always loved good comedy. In his spirituality, Corey had deep feelings as he explored the big issues of existence: the conflicts between good and evil in the real world, as contrasted between the standards of organized religion and society; the tensions between materialism and meaningful action in life. Like any teen, he was struggling to find his place in society, with his peers and within his family. In the music he wrote and played – he was a guitarist – and the poetry he wrote and recited, the themes of aspiration, hope and peace were contrasted with those of uncertainty, tension of modern life and the sometimes dehumanizing or demoralizing forces in popular culture. Baseball figured hugely in Corey’s boyhood. He was a diehard Orioles fan, who wasn’t satisfied with one favorite player’s jersey, but had to have two. He played baseball throughout his boyhood, pitching, fielding and second base. Being a lefty, he was a coach’s dream when at bat and as a gifted base stealer, he could win the game. His family and friends will miss his wry sense of humor, his lopsided grin, beautiful eyes and abundant red curls. It was apparent to all who knew Corey that he was deeply devoted to his mother and father, enjoying sharing time and activities together. We hold him in our hearts and will always remember his unique perspective on life, gifted poetic sense and gentle soul.