Page 170 - WHO'S WHO OF DUDLEY ROTARY

qualifications he took up cycling again. In the late 1990s he enjoyed(?!) the Amateur experience
of riding three legs of the Tour de France (étapes du Tour), and in 2014 completed a 10 day cycle
ride from Land's End to John O' Groats, raising £10,000 for the Rotary International ‘End Polio
Now’ campaign.

566 John James ASHTON (1939 - ) (Inducted 4.12.2006; still a member at 2022.) Crash barrier
distribution. Joint MD, with his younger brother Richard, of Ashton Plant
Hire (Dudley) Ltd based at the Dormston Trading Estate, Gornal, which
from about 2010 has traded as Ashton Crash Barrier. The firm specialises
in the supply and installation of highway crash barriers and impact
resistant safety fences. The business was established in about 1952 as H
W Ashton & Sons Ltd by their civil engineer father Harold, and for many
years concentrated on earthmoving equipment and excavator hire and
groundworks contracting. John was born in Derby but was only three
weeks old when his family moved to Worcester. However his formative
years were in Birmingham. His working life has been in engineering in various forms, his first
employment being with civil engineering contractor Turriff Construction. He came to Dudley
and joined the family business in 1967, living first in Woodsetton, then Sedgley, and now in
Tettenhall Wood.

567 Dr Anthony Graham DEAN (1946- ) (Inducted 1.10.2007; President 2012-13; made Paul Harris
Fellow in 2019; still a member at 2022.) General law practice. Partner in
Dean & Co., solicitors with offices in Dudley and Stourbridge. The
practice was started by his wife Janet in 1977 in Stourbridge. For a short
time from 1984 the firm practised with Brian Senter as Senter Dean & Co
but reverted to Dean & Co in 1986. In 1997 the firm opened an office in
the Inhedge, Dudley, with Graham as the partner in charge, and in 2000
they absorbed the Dudley law practice of Southalls. He retired in 2015
when the business was transferred to CLB Lawyers in Dudley. Graham is
Dudley born and bred. His early years were in Holly Hall. After leaving
Dudley Grammar School he gained a BSc in Physics at University College, London. He then
moved to Birmingham University, obtaining a Master’s degree in Electron Physics and a PhD in
Space Research followed by four years as a Research Fellow during which he published 14 papers
in leading scientific journals. In 1975 he changed careers to law and was articled at Wyre Forest
District Council. After being admitted as a solicitor in 1978 he spent a year as a police prosecutor
in Birmingham before joining Janet in the firm in May 1979. He primarily did criminal work, both
as defence solicitor and agent prosecutor, but after about 8 years gave that up to concentrate
on Wills, Probate and Trust work and the commercial side of the firm including company,
business sales and purchases, commercial leases and employment work.
His award of Paul Harris Fellow was in recognition of his great contribution as Secretary to
the Rotary House management board, 2010-18, and the most successful transfer of Rotary
House to CHADD, also his work as prime mover of the Club’s project to provide over £30k of
playground equipment to the Pens Meadow Special School, Wordsley, and his work as District
Vocational Service Coordinator from 2016. He is now an Assistant Governor of District 1210
since 2019.
He has been closely involved with the Black Country Living Museum, even before it opened
to the public in 1978. In the early days he was a committee member and then Chairman of the
Friends of the Museum for three years. He also joined the Museum’s Board of Trustees and
served for over 30 years until 2013. His interest in canal boating led him to serve on the
Stourbridge Navigation Trust and as Secretary to Fellows, Morton & Clayton Ltd, traditional canal
hauliers. He is an excellent cook, so when he had offices in central Stourbridge he used to assist