Ashley Elizabeth Sheeks Butler

Ashley Elizabeth Sheeks Butler passed away around noon on August 27, 2024, at the age of 41, after four years of fighting chronic rejection of her transplanted lungs and a lifetime of fighting cystic fibrosis.

She was born on Dec. 8, 1982 and was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis before the age of three. Told she may not survive beyond the age of ten, Ashley set about on a life of beating the odds. During that time, she and her family developed a bond built on trips to Disney World and a strong penchant for ridiculousness: an attitude self-summarized as “That’s Sheeks, not freaks.” 

She beat the early odds thanks to the undying dedication of her parents and siblings. Not to mention doctors. Unlike her peers, Ashley had to take breaks from schoolwork for long hospital stays, often a few times a year. There were continual visits to The Pierre Vauthy Cystic Fibrosis Center of Northwest Ohio, a pills routine, home IVs, and a variety of breathing treatments. Nevertheless, she once again beat the odds, graduating from Bowling Green High School in 2001. 

Shortly after, cystic fibrosis began doing more and more damage to her lungs, despite the treatments and the work of her CF clinic and a new team of doctors at University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Through the graciousness of an organ donor’s family, Ashley received a double-lung transplant on Sept 24, 2007. Her recovery was quick; two weeks later she was carrying her infant nephew on a tour through a museum.

Ashley took to her new lease on life with all the zeal and energy a person on a steady diet of Hamburger Helper and Nesquik could possibly muster. In 2009, she began attending Bowling Green State University. She would graduate with her Bachelor’s in 2011, and then finish her Master’s in Human Donation Science from the University of Toledo in 2012. 

That same year, she married her husband and bought property at Disney Vacation Club, checking off three life-goals in the span of months just five years post-transplant.

Ashley never lost to the drive to give back to the science that had given her this extended life. In 2013, she began working for Eversight of Michigan, in Ann Arbor, helping people receive cornea transplants to regain the gift of sight. She was proud of her work there over the next ten-plus years, and especially the times she got to approach families about the gift of organ donation. She never used her own story, never told families that she had received a transplant even while she was asking them to consider offering that gift to others. Such was Ashley’s grace. Such was her character.

In her remaining time, Ashley enjoyed every moment spent with family and friends, with her husband and their overlarge collection of cats and their dog, Howie. She enjoyed every meal she ever had, especially at the Wood County Fair, and had an entire kitchen cabinet dedicated to varieties of candy. Her passion for napping was legendary: friends at Eversight referred to her 25-minute power-nap in the car by her initials: An ASB. If she was in invited to a wedding, she was on the dance floor all night…without one sip of alcohol in her system. She waited all year long for Christmas, partly because of the lights but mostly because she loved that the season is marked by kindness and generosity. Such was the spirit of Ashley.

In early 2021, Ashley learned that her transplanted lungs were now in rejection. Transplants are wonderful, of course, but are not necessarily forever. For the next three years, Ashley continued beating the odds over and over. She continued working in the organ donation field with the awareness that she would now need a donation to save her life. She worked at Eversight for as long as she could, literally until the doctors made her go on disability. Such was the passion of this woman.

Unfortunately, while her spirit was strong until the very end, her body needed rest. Such it is that now we say goodbye to such a preciously pure soul.

Ashley, her husband and family ask that you consider your own status as an organ donor in light of what you’ve read. If you’ve known Ashley, you know how wonderful every moment was in which she graced our presence. Many of the people whose lives she touched would never have had the chance if a family hadn’t seen through their own pain and suffering to offer the lungs that gave Ashley her second lease. If you would like more information, please follow this link — https://donatelife.net

Ashley is survived by her husband, Bo Butler; her parents, Randy and Terrill Sheeks; her sister Nicole Sheeks; her bother and sister-in-law Rory and Samantha Sheeks; and enough rowdy nieces and nephews to make any occasion feel like a vacation with the Griswolds. She is remembered and loved by anyone who ever knew her. We are sorry for your loss. 

Family will be receiving friends on Tuesday, September 3, 2024 from 5:00 p.m. until 7:00p.m. and Wednesday, September 4, 2024 from 11:00 a.m. until 1:00 p.m.  Funeral Services will be held on Wednesday, September 4, 2024 at 1:00 p.m.  at Newcomer Funeral Home, 4752 Heatherdowns Blvd., Toledo, OH 43614 (419-381-1900).