Rea Kirklin Ashley, M.D., who was internationally recognized for his work in pediatric orthopaedics, died of heart failure on July 21, 1996. Kirk was born in San Francisco on June 2, 1923. His father was a well known ear, nose, and throat specialist in that city.
Kirk was a proud and loyal alumnus of Princeton University, class of 1943. He attended Temple University School of Medicine in the V12 Program from 1943 to 1946. He served his internship at San Francisco General Hospital in 1946 and 1947 and then entered active duty in the United States Navy Medical Corps. He remained in the service until 1949.
In 1953, Kirk completed his orthopaedic training at Temple University and entered private practice in San Francisco, in the office of LeRoy Abbott and Frederic Bost. He joined the clinical faculty of the University of California School of Medicine and later became a Clinical Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery.
Kirk's love for the Shriners Hospitals began when he worked at the Philadelphia Unit during his residency. He was an active staff member at the Shriners Hospital in San Francisco from 1953 on, becoming Chief of Staff in 1981 and Chief Emeritus in 1991. He remained active in the Shriners Hospital until the time of his death.
A Fellow of The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, Kirk served in a multitude of offices, including Chairman of the Admissions Committee, Secretary, and Treasurer, and as a member of the Finance Committee and the Board of Directors. He served as President of the Scoliosis Research Society as well as a member of The American Orthopaedic Association, the American Medical Association, the California Medical Association, the LeRoy C. Abbott Orthopaedic Society, the Wilson-Bost Interurban Club, the Twentieth Century Orthopaedic Association, and the Pediatric Orthopaedic Association of North America.
One of Kirk's major interests in orthopaedic surgery was the treatment of scoliosis. He brought techniques to Northern California that raised the level of treatment to the state of the art that it is today. He was widely regarded as the most knowledgeable and experienced scoliosis surgeon in the Bay Area. He also was very knowledgeable with regard to the orthopaedic manifestations of poliomyelitis and was a teacher to all of us who were not in practice at the time of the poliomyelitis epidemic. In addition, Kirk introduced to North America the now widely practiced concept of femoral shortening in the treatment of dislocated hips in children.
Kirk was well known by his friends as an outstanding raconteur of stories told in a multitude of dialects, and he was much sought after for after-dinner speeches. He had a long-standing love of opera and could recognize almost any opera singer in the world and discuss their careers knowledgeably. He was also an outdoorsman; he was a longtime upland bird hunter, but the activity that he enjoyed the most was fishing. He and his wife traveled to New Zealand every year to catch and release New Zealand trout.
The R. K. Ashley Lectureship, sponsored by Kirk's friends and former residents, was established three years ago and will continue in his memory for many years to come.
Kirk is survived by his wife, Elizabeth Lawlor Ashley, of San Francisco; his son, Rea, of Mill Valley; his daughter, Elizabeth Hope; his brother, William, of Eureka; and his sister, Anne Kidney, of Palo Alto.
P. J.