Kimbrough Bassett

1931 - 2019

January 19, 1931 - October 7, 2019 Kimbrough Stone Bassett of Riverside and Palos Verdes Estates, CA passed away on Monday, October 7, 2019 at the age of 88, following complications from an ischemic stroke. A private ceremony will be held by the family to honor his memory and legacy. Kimbrough Bassett was born on January 19, 1931 in Evanston, Illinois to Albert Bassett and Betty Lou Stone. He attended St. Alban's School in Washington D.C. and graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis MD in 1953. Although sailing would remain a lifelong passion, his ambition to be a pilot led him to join the Air Force and report to Denver, Colorado as one of the first Air Training Officers instructing cadets at the newly-formed U.S. Air Force Academy. He and his fellow ATO's were later made honorary members of the USAFA's first graduating class of 1959. While helping to launch the Air Force Academy, he fell in love with another staff member, Carole Gilchrist. They were married in Denver, Colorado on May 21, 1956, and remained so for 56 years until her passing in September 2012. After the Air Force, Mr. Bassett worked in the nascent computer industry, traveling across the country computerizing Procter & Gamble operations before settling in California with his young family. His work at the Pacific Coast Stock Exchange pioneered the first computerized reconciliations of stock trading. He later joined an investment firm in Southern California until his retirement in 2003. Throughout life, Mr. Bassett remained a loving father and devoted husband, making time for family sailing trips to Catalina Island off the Los Angeles coast, and traveling the world with his wife Carole. His love of the ocean persisted -- he took up kayaking after retirement, and contributed to The Nature Conservancy's coastal conservation efforts. He and Carole were avid tennis players, and upon her passing he supported the U.S. Air Force Academy Women's Tennis Award in her memory. He also established a memorial award for Bataan survivor Col. Jay Harrelson, whose widow Kit Harrelson remained a dear companion throughout Mr. Bassett's later life. Kimbrough Bassett is survived by his two daughters, Leslie Ann Bassett and Diane Moran Bassett; his son, Kimbrough Stone Bassett Jr., granddaughters, Nadia Jean Bassett and Miranda Stone Sterling-Bassett, and sister Susan Finnegan.