Dr. Keith W. Ashcraft, 83, died Monday, July 29, 2019. Keith was born Sept. 1, 1935, in Hillsboro, Kan., the son of Chester and Rose (Rowland) Ashcraft. As a young man, from about the age 10 until he got out to the Army at age 20, he worked summers on the farm owned by his brother-in-law, Phil Adrian. After the Army, Keith became a pre-med student at the University of Kansas and then attended KU School of Medicine. During this time he met the really great mentor in his life, Dr. Thomas Holder.
On August 17, 1957, he married Connie Marie Sager at Huron, S.D.
After finishing medical school and seven years of general surgical and pediatric surgical residency, all at KU, Dr. Ashcraft completed his cardiac surgical training at the Great Ormond Street Hospital for Sick Children in London as the Locum Tenens Consultant in Thoracic Surgery, a prestigious and rare honor. With three board certifications in general, cardio-thoracic and urologic surgery he returned to the U.S. with his family to spend a year at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston. When he was offered the opportunity to join Dr. Holder in private practice, the Ashcraft family returned to Kansas City in 1973.
Dr. Ashcraft’s professional life was characterized by incredible good fortune. He held the position of Chief of the Section of Urology at Children’s Mercy until 1993, when Dr. Holder retired and Dr. Ashcraft became Chief of the Section of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery. He was then appointed Surgeon-in-Chief in 1994, serving in that position until he retired in 1999. Dr. Ashcraft also helped train subsequent generations of pediatric surgeons as Director of the Pediatric Surgery Training Program at Children’s Mercy, Professor of Surgery at the University of Missouri–Kansas City School of Medicine, and Adjunct Clinical Professor of Surgery at KU School of Medicine.
Outside the operating room and classroom, Dr. Ashcraft was active in pediatric surgical organizations. He was elected to office in both of the major U.S. pediatric surgical organizations, ultimately serving as Chair of the Surgical Section of the American Academy of Pediatrics and as President of the American Pediatric Surgical Association. He also became active internationally and served as President of the World Federation of Associations of Pediatric Surgery.
Dr. Ashcraft published more than 100 papers in peer-reviewed journals and was the author and editor of several books, including Pediatric Surgery, the textbook he co-wrote with Dr. Holder that went through four editions and became the most widely used pediatric surgical text in the world.
Nowhere was Keith’s good fortune more manifest than in his family life. He is survived by his wife of more than 60 years, Connie; four children, Laura Way (Dennis), Nathan Ashcraft (Ruth), Lisa White (Randy), and Jim Ashcraft (Debbie); and seven grandchildren, Jason Way (Caroline), Jonathan Way (Bevin Sivitz), Sidney White (Cali Simmons), Sean White (Amy McCasland), Kyle Ashcraft (Amanda), LCpl Griffin Ashcraft, USMC and Lily Ashcraft.
Keith was preceded in death by his parents; his sisters, Ruth Adrian and Joyce Book; and an infant brother, Robert Ashcraft.
In retirement, Keith became a prolific watercolor painter and belonged to the Images Gallery for several years. He also served on the boards of Della Lamb Community Center, Kansas City Repertory Theatre, Mid-America Arts Alliance, John Locke Society, Kansas City Hospice, Mainstream Coalition, Children’s Center for the Visually Impaired and FosterAdopt Connect (not necessarily in that order).
There will be no visitation or funeral service, but a public celebration of Keith’s life will be held Sunday, September 1, 2019 from 1 to 5 p.m. at Indian Hills Country Club, 6847 Tomahawk Rd., Mission Hills, Kan.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions are suggested to FosterAdopt Connect, 18600 E. 37th Ter. S., Independence, Mo. 64057 or at www.fosteradopt.org
