Nolan Earl Ashman

In Loving Memory of Nolan Earl Ashman
August 7, 1934 - May 17, 2026

There are some men whose lives are measured not simply by years, but by the number of people they've quietly helped, guided, protected, encouraged, and loved along the way. Nolan Earl Ashman was one of those men.

Nolan passed away leaving behind a remarkable legacy of service, intelligence, humor, compassion, and dedication to both family and community. He was a teacher, counselor, fisherman, golfer, music lover, professor, highway patrol officer, Sheriff's deputy, consultant, mentor, veteran, speaker, and the best storyteller and jokester-but to those who knew him best, he was simply a husband, Dad, Grandpa, colleague, and friend.

Born August 7, 1934, in Scipio, Millard County, Utah, to Albert E. and Norene M. Ashman, Nolan was raised with a strong work ethic, curiosity about people, fear of roosters, and a lifelong determination to keep learning. Those qualities shaped the extraordinary path his life would take.

He graduated from Cedar City High School in 1952 then pursued higher education with relentless determination and an impressive appetite for knowledge. Over the years he attended the College of Southern Utah (now Southern Utah University), the University of Utah, Utah State University, Brigham Young University, Stanford University, and the University for Humanistic Studies, ultimately earning advanced degrees in psychology and clinical psychology.

Nolan served in the United States Army during the Korean War era beginning in 1953. While stationed in South Korea with the 9th Infantry Regiment and later the 32nd Infantry Regiment, he served in a variety of roles ranging from infantryman to administrative and training positions. He rose through the ranks quickly, becoming a sergeant by 1955. He received many military awards including the National Defense Service medal, Korean Service medal, United Nations Service medal, and Good Conduct medal. Like many of his generation, he rarely bragged about his military service, though those experiences shaped his resilience, discipline, and deep sense of duty and pride in his country.

Education and helping others became the center of Nolan's professional life. He worked as a counselor, professor, and administrator at numerous universities and schools throughout Utah and California before making a lasting home at Dixie State College (Utah Tech University) in St. George. There he served as Director of Counseling, Associate Professor of Psychology, and later Director of the Drug and Alcohol Prevention and Education Program. His students remember him as brilliant, insightful, demanding, compassionate, funny, and entertaining-in the way only truly great professors can be. Yet many also remembered that after class he would visit with struggling students and help them believe in themselves.

Nolan had an extraordinary fascination with human behavior and devoted much of his life to psychology, criminal justice, and forensic profiling. In 1979 he graduated from the Arizona Law Enforcement Academy and went on to serve with both the Arizona Department of Public Safety and the Mohave County Sheriff's Office, eventually earning the rank of sergeant. He later became a consultant to numerous law enforcement agencies throughout Utah, Nevada, and Arizona.

His expertise in psychological profiling, interrogation, crisis intervention, officer stress management, and forensic psychology made him highly respected throughout the region. He taught POST training for law enforcement officers and was frequently called upon to speak at conferences and workshops.

But beyond the long résumé and accomplishments was a man with a huge heart and a deeply loyal devotion to family.

In 1956, he married the love of his life, Yvonne Bauer, in the St. George, Utah LDS temple. Together they built a family centered on love, laughter, resilience, and support. Nolan was a proud father to Alicia Gubler, Michele Bell, Nicole Cruthers, and Erika Brendle. He loved his children deeply and took tremendous pride in their lives and accomplishments.

He also possessed a wonderful sense of humor-witty, intelligent, and often perfectly timed. He could deliver a one-line observation that left an entire room laughing. He loved conversation, ideas, debates, stories, and teaching moments, whether you asked for them or not. He had a gift for making people think more deeply about how they interacted with the world around them.

Those who knew Nolan understood that his life was ultimately about helping people. Whether counseling students, guiding officers, supporting friends, or loving his family, he believed people mattered. He believed lives could improve. He believed wisdom should be shared.

And he truly never stopped learning.

Nolan received numerous honors throughout his life, including recognition from the Utah School Counselor's Association, Utah Peace Officers Association, and Utah Chiefs of Police Association Auxiliary. Yet his greatest achievement was not found in awards or titles. It was found in the countless people whose lives were better because he cared enough to listen, teach, encourage, or help them through difficult moments.

His family will remember his intelligence, his stories, his humor, his stubborn streak, his dedication, his love for cars and military planes, and his intense love for a good Chinese buffet.

The world feels a little less interesting without him in it.

Nolan was preceded in death by his beloved wife Yvonne Bauer, his parents Albert and Norene Ashman, his sister Phyllis and brother Charles, his daughters Alicia (Clare Gubler, deceased), Michele (Gary Bell), Nicole (Tim Cruthers), and Erika (Chad Brendle), along with 19 grandchildren, 26 great-grandchildren, extended family, friends, former students, colleagues, and many others whose lives he influenced over the decades.

His legacy lives on not only in the many accomplishments he achieved, but in the compassion, wisdom, and strength he passed to those who loved him.

Funeral services will be June 12, 2026, at 11:00 am with a viewing at 9:30 am that morning. Interment will take place in Tonaquint Cemetery, 1777 S. Dixie Drive. St. George, Utah.

The family would like to thank Dr. Joseph Wooley for his years of medical help through the years and Dixie Hospice for their compassion and care.

Arrangements are made under the direction of Spilsbury Mortuary, 110 S. Bluff St., St. George, Utah, (435) 673-2454.

Friends and family are invited to sign Nolan's online guest book at www.spilsburymortuary.com