A Beacon in Business and Giving, Cliff Ashdown Dies at 87
I wrote this obit for My Village News in honour of my late grandpa Cliff Ashdown, a man who was generous with his time, guidance and humour to all he met. He was a loving Pa to me, and doting PaPa to Matilda.
Charles Clifford Ashdown was highly successful in the automotive business, property investing, and adored his family but possibly his proudest achievement was the education he enabled for almost 30 young boys at the school that also shaped him. He died 5 October after a short battle with lung cancer at St Andrew’s War Memorial Hospital, Spring Hill. He was 87.
In 1941, when World War II was raging, eight year old Cliff became a student at Churchie. The East Brisbane school provided security, safety and friendships for him that lasted a lifetime. So it made sense, decades later that Cliff and his wife Leslyn would give back to Churchie. To date The Cliff Ashdown Bursary has supported 28 boys, enabling them to stay at the school when their family’s financial situation changed.
“The first gift was the hardest. After that, it was easier and always rewarding,” Cliff said. “Knowing that I am helping more boys get a Churchie education is important to me and something of which I am proud.”
In his time at Churchie Cliff was hardly an “A grade” student, headmaster Harry Roberts once declaring at a school assembly, “Ashdown, you are the least likely of your classmates to succeed!” This only made Cliff determined to prove him wrong so succeed he did, initially in operating his father’s Beacon Service Station at Redcliffe.
The era was one where fathers and sons spent entire weekends hovering over car bonnets tinkering. Which gave Cliff and his brother Ron an idea to expand the business to importing automotive electrical parts.
Over time Ashdown Enterprises grew to be one of the largest businesses of its kind in Australia with branches in every state and territory and more than 500 staff. It was eventually sold and merged to become Ashdown Ingram.
Cliff was a long time New Farm local, always up for a chat at the dog park with his beloved miniature schnauzer Ivy in tow. To all he was generous with his time, guidance and humour. For fun, Cliff was a keen angler, crab fisherman, golfer and football follower but he devoted the most energy and love towards family.
He is survived by his daughter Gayle, three grand children and five great grandchildren.
