David Ashley, Senior Vice President of Freeman French Freeman, will reach two milestones May 13 ‘ his 75th birthday and the day he retires after a 53-year career with Vermont’s oldest architectural firm.
Ashley joined Freeman French Freeman in 1958 after graduating with a BA in architecture from Yale University. He is the only member of the firm to have worked with its founders: Bill Freeman, through the ‘70s; John French, until he retired in ‘67; and with Ruth Freeman, who died in ‘71.
Ashley’s studies at Yale were conducted by many of the great names in architecture from that era, including Louis I. Kahn. Ashley attended Philip Johnson design critiques and standing room only Frank Lloyd Wright lectures. He was also active in the Marching and Concert Bands at Yale. Locally, he has been a member of the Enosburg and Westford-Fairfax Town Bands, the St. James Bell Choir and the Sterling Weed Orchestra of St. Albans.
‘David has achieved a career that rivals no other. He is a remarkable individual,’ said Jesse Beck, President of Freeman French Freeman, ‘who values long-term commitment and he has expressed that through his work, his family, and his love of many activities he enjoys to this day. He has been an inspiration on many, many levels and he will be dearly missed by us all.’
Ashley and his wife of 55 years, Sandra, live in Westford. They have five children and 15 grandchildren.
From apprentice to project lead, these are just a few projects David has been involved in:
Shepardson Med-Surg wing of the then Mary Fletcher Hospital (apprenticing with John French)
Proctor Hall at Middlebury College working with Ruth Freeman
Saint Michael’s College Chapel of the Archangel and the original Circular Library
Eight public high schools, including: Barre, Burlington, Essex Junction and Mount Mansfield
WCAX Weather Station atop Mount Mansfield
University of Vermont: Gutterson Fieldhouse and structural design for Patrick Gymnasium
Area elementary schools, including Swanton Elementary
Dial Central Building for Bell Telephone Co.
IBM: Building 973, the mid-90’s ‘full capacity build’ with nearly 175,000 sq.ft. of semi-conductor process clean rooms
Burlington International Airport: major expansion initiatives starting in the mid -90’s.