Longtime Thoroughbred Proponent Ashton Moynihan Dies

Ashton Moynihan, funding director for the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance, died Jan. 24 after a long battle with cancer.

A beloved mother to Emory and Madison Moynihan, and beloved sister to Jennifer Nesbit, Moynihan was born and raised in Charlottesville, Va., where she grew up as a Cavalier through and through due to her father Harisson "Chief" Nesbit's legendary years as a University of Virginia football player and then coach.

After graduating from Sweet Briar College, Moynihan moved to New York to pursue a career in the Thoroughbred industry. It didn't take long for her to be pulled to Lexington, where she began her lifetime involvement at Fasig-Tipton, selling stallion interests and scheduling yearling inspections. 

"She was a wonderful person, a great human being, and someone that everyone that met her enjoyed being around and was enriched by having known her," said Boyd Browning, Fasig-Tipton's president and chief executive officer. "She was one of those rare people you never heard anyone say anything bad about, she was so genuine, so sincere. She was a dedicated and tireless worker who did a great job and then decided to concentrate her efforts on raising two lovely daughters, who are a testament to her legacy. 

"It was really neat to see her get reengaged with the Thoroughbred industry with the TAA. She was huge proponent of Thoroughbred aftercare and did a great job with TAA."

"Some of Madi and I's fondest childhood memories consist of running around the Fasig office with her colleagues who came to be her best friends and family, and they will remain that way always to us," Emory and Madison Moynihan said in a statement released Saturday afternoon. "She raised Madi and I alongside her best friends Bill and Kelley Farish. She loved their kids, all eight of them as her own.

"Mom's dedication and love can been seen through her work with the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance where she was director of funding.

"She was loved by so many—especially Bill Graves, whom we know she is now reunited with, which brings us both great happiness. We know this world won't be the same without her smile, but we now all have the most special angel looking out for us."

Moynihan was thrilled at the opportunity to join the Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance after taking several years off to raise her daughters.

"Ashton's loss is deeply felt by her friends and co-workers," said John Phillips, president of TAA. "Not only was she was a consummate professional in every way, but she was one of the kindest people I've ever met. She was a real star, and we will miss her very much."

Visitation will be held Jan. 27 from 5-7 p.m. at Kerr Brothers Funeral Home, 463 East Main Street, Lexington. A service will be held at 3 p.m. Jan. 28 at Good Shepherd on East Main in Lexington. In lieu of flowers, Moynihan's family requests that donations be made to the TAA. Her friends have organized a Go Fund Me page for that purpose in her honor: https://www.gofundme.com/f/in-memory-of-ashton-moynihan.