David Sherwood Ashe, of Edgartown and Beverly Hills, Michigan, died due to complications of his type two diabetes in his Martha’s Vineyard home on May 11 with his beloved dog and best friend, Brady, by his side. He was 69.

David was born on Jan. 21, 1956, in Southbridge, to Frank and Eileen Ashe. He earned his undergraduate degree from Assumption College in Worcester, and later completed a master of business administration at Northeastern University in Boston. His close friends from college fondly remember their time with David as “full of antics,” a reflection of his spirited nature and infectious sense of humor.

His career began 43 years ago on Wall Street at Merrill Lynch. Though he later relocated between Michigan and Massachusetts, he never returned to 1 Liberty Plaza until the week before his passing. That final visit to the place where it all began was, in his words, both gratifying and inspiring, and he was surrounded by some of his oldest friends while doing so.

David married Jacqueline Ashe in 1987. Together they had two daughters, Jessica and Julianna Ashe, whom he loved more than anything in the world. His daughters remember him fondly as their greatest cheerleader and supporter. He never missed a chance to tell them how proud he was of the women they had become. He coached their youth soccer teams, warmly embracing not only his daughters but all their friends and teammates as if they were his own.

He had a special gift for making his daughters laugh and giving them loving nicknames, something he did not do only for Jessica and Julianna, but also for many of the people he cherished throughout his life.

He found deep contentment in the solitude of his Martha’s Vineyard home, where he was surrounded by the soothing rhythm of the ocean, his beloved dog and his ever-ready golf clubs. He shared a profound connection with the Island, a place that brought him peace and a sense of belonging unlike anywhere else.

The sound of David’s laughter was never far, and often could be heard echoing through countless phone conversations, where he connected with and supported friends from all walks of his 69 years of life.

Just last year, he lovingly devoted his time to organizing the Southbridge High School Class of 1974’s 50th reunion, an effort that sparked a deep joy within him, and one he described as “the gift that keeps on giving.” Reconnecting with old classmates ignited a spiritual awakening in David, something he had been searching for much of his life. In September of that year, following the reunion, he was lovingly baptized, embraced by the Holy Spirit, with several of his cherished classmates by his side.

He is survived by his wife Jacqueline Ashe, his daughters, Jessica and Julianna Ashe, his sister, Betsie Rumbaugh, and his dog Brady.

Lovingly, David lives on through the laughter he shared and in the hearts of all who knew him forever.

With his sudden and unexpected passing, the family is still in consideration of plans for a memorial and/or celebration of life.