Gerald W. “Jerry” Ash, 85, died May 9, 2025, in Sun City Center, Fla, where he lived the past 26 years.
He was born June 3, 1939, in Clarksburg, W.Va., and was adopted at birth by Minnie Pearl Hibbs Ash and Forest Earl Ash of Bridgeport, W.Va.
A 1957 graduate of Bridgeport High School, he earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in journalism at West Virginia University and later taught journalism at WVU for seven years. He served in the U.S. Army from 1961 to 1964 as a public information specialist.
In the 1970s, he was co-owner of the Preston County News in Terra Alta, where he co-founded the Pioneer Press of West Virginia, a commercial printing firm. Under his direction, the newspaper earned more than 40 state and national awards for excellence in journalism. He also co-authored the book “West Virginia USA,” a collection of photographs and stories portraying the life and history of the state.
Following the sale of his interests in the printing firm and newspaper, he and his wife, Michele, established Associated Professional Services, primarily a graphics and desktop publishing business.
In the 1980s he was elected to two terms in the West Virginia State Senate, representing the 15th Senatorial District. Following his legislative years, he served briefly as vice president of the West Virginia Hospital Association and then became president and CEO of the Nevada Hospital Association.
While in Nevada, he also founded and served as president and CEO of the Liability Cooperative of Nevada, a self-funded liability and risk-management program for hospitals and hospital-based physicians.
He was preceded in death by his adoptive parents and sister Beverly Belle Ash Dunn, sister Carol McCarty Griffin, and birth mother, Ellen Ash McCarty, all of Harrison County, West Virginia.
He is survived by his wife of 52 years, the former Michele E. Linn; a daughter, Elisabeth (Libby) Linn (Lester) Herbert of Mulberry, Fla.; four grandchildren, Keena Ash-Pierce and Kaiha Herbert, both of Mulberry, Angel Hernandez and Jensen Hernandez, both of Brandon, Fla; and two nieces, Jennifer Lynch of Bridgeport and Missy Tyler of Good Hope, both in West Virginia.
Burial was at Bay Pines National Cemetery, Bay Pines, Fla., near St. Petersburg.
Donations can be made to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society in honor of his wife, who has had multiple sclerosis since she was 15.
