Leslie (Corin) Ash

Leslie Ann Corin-Ash, a resident of Bedford Massachusetts, passed away on March 8, 2026, in Burlington Massachusetts at the age of 82. She had a sudden brain bleed on March 4 and was on life support until March 8. Her liver saved the life of a 50-year-old man.

Leslie was born in The Bronx, New York on May 5, 1943, the only daughter of Jerome and Ann Corin. Leslie had twin brothers, Roger and Ron Corin. She is survived by her husband Peter Ash and by her brother Ron Corin. Her other brother, Roger Corin, passed away in early 2025.

Leslie was married twice: first to Jim Jackson from 1973 to 1981 and then to Peter Ash from 1991 to her death.

Leslie was born with a nonfunctioning thyroid and was unable to walk or talk at age 2 and a half. Her uncle, Leonard Greenfield, suspected Leslie had a thyroid problem and knew that a new treatment had been developed. As soon as she started on the medication, she began walking and talking. She received a bachelor’s degree in psychology at the University of Connecticut, Storrs in 1966, and a master’s degree in social work at Simmons College in 1978.

One of her first jobs was at a New York City advertising agency, where she wrote advertising copy and was the house hippie.

After graduating from Simmons and getting an LICSW she had several jobs, including a medical social worker at New England Rehabilitation Hospital (1978-1992) and at Lawrence Memorial Hospital from 1992 to1993.  After this she worked for various home care organizations and then for the Massachusetts ALS Association.

Leslie showed compassion for nature and for all human beings who suffered. She worked tirelessly for progressive causes, universal health care, and helped individuals in great need. As a medical social worker, she helped people face life’s most challenging crises. She also was a social justice warrior. Her work led her to recognize that environmental degradation caused many diseases. She opposed those responsible for despoiling the environment.

Leslie was a cherished member of a women’s spirituality circle since 1986, honoring and deepening our connection to the earth. She was also a longtime member of the First Parish Unitarian Church and Lexington Toastmasters.

Leslie recognized early on that she had the ability to communicate with animals. She started speaking with her client’s pets to find out what was really going on in dysfunctional homes. She began training with Penelope Smith and with Spring Farm Cares to strengthen her animal communication skills. She helped many people by communicating with their pets to help find lost animals or to make life or death decisions for ailing pets. Eventually she communicated with wild animals such as dolphins, whales, elephants, and even squirrels and spiders. The whales encouraged her to advocate for cleaning the oceans and tackling climate change.

Leslie was an active member of a committee working to establish universal health care in Massachusetts. She worked hard to improve access to public buildings for the disabled.

While working in home health care, Leslie came to realize that in many locations people with neurological diseases had many neighbors with the same disease. While working for the ALS Association she lobbied successfully for Massachusetts to establish a disease registry that would record the locations of deaths from various neurological diseases. That way, toxic clusters could be found and remediated.

Leslie had a unique blend of love of nature, spiritual power, intelligence, and people skills. She showed a childlike, elfin persona. She staged doll tea parties with her two godchildren.  She played with a large collection of soulful stuffed animals. With her curly flaming red hair and her fair complexion, people often mistook her for being Irish, and she developed a very convincing Irish brogue.

A celebration of Leslie’s life will take place at the First Parish Unitarian Universalist Church on The Great Road in Bedford Massachusetts on May 3, 2026, at 2pm. It will be available on Zoom.

Friends are invited to donate, in Leslie’s name, to one of her favorite charities:

• Spring Farm Cares

• NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council)

• CHEJ (Center for Health and Environmental Justice)

• WWF (World Wildlife Fund)