Services will be Saturday for Lafayette businessman Arthur Hartie Spence Jr., who died in a glider crash last week.
Visitation will be held at First Baptist Church in Lafayette, Louisiana, on Friday evening, August 8th, from 6-8PM, and on Saturday, August 9th, from 9-11AM, before the memorial service at 11AM.
According to the Morgan County Fire & EMS in Utah, Spence crashed Aug. 1 on Mahogany Mountain; the cause of the crash is still under investigation. A fire started with the crash but was contained.
Here's his obituary; you can read it at Martin and Castille's website here.
Arthur Hartie Spence, Jr. passed away while gliding through the majestic mountain ranges surrounding Salt Lake City, Utah on August 1, 2025. Born in Shreveport, on April 26, 1965 to Arthur Hartie Spence, Sr. and Nona Frye Spence, Hartie grew up with a younger sister, Catherine Louise Spence Sokora, and younger brother, James Stephen Spence.
From a young age, he demonstrated his brilliant mind that would often get him into trouble due to the urge to learn how things work by taking them apart and putting them back together again.
He took his academics seriously, graduating valedictorian of Airline High School in Bossier City, Louisiana. A high school science fair project using the unique material properties of nitinol set him apart and earned him admission to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where he earned his Bachelors of Science Degree in Electrical Engineering in 1987. He was a part of the Lambda Chi Fraternity, which was a family away from home.
Hartie met his wife, Kim on a blind date arranged by his high school best friend. In the 35 years of marriage Hartie and Kim had, he loved to tell the story of their first date and how he asked her if she would be the woman he would marry.
Hartie founded ASH Industries in 1991 with Kim on the principle that it would be a tool to faithfully serve Jesus Christ. Hartie's desire was for God's will to be done as ASH served the community, the families who worked there, and the lives of its customers and the people their products would impact. Starting with a single injection molding machine, ASH has grown into a company of 100 employees that continues to expand and serve the lives of the people it touches.
Shortly after returning to Lafayette, Louisiana, Hartie and Kim began serving in the church’s College and Career department, where he faithfully taught each week-continuing up until the day he went home to be with the Lord. He was ordained as a Deacon at First Baptist, started the pastor’s prayer group, coordinated a weekly men’s prayer breakfast, and was deeply involved with the Baptist Collegiate Ministry and the Evangeline Baptist Association.
In 2005, Hartie took on a leadership role in the Royal Ambassadors, a missions group for boys in grades 1-6 at First Baptist Church. He dedicated his time and resources to creating a program that would allow boys to learn about Christ while being mentored either by their own fathers or the father figures in their lives. His goal was to equip these boys to be young men with life skills and faith that would set them on the right path for the rest of their lives.
Hartie’s priorities in life were God, his family, and work in that order. While he went through great lengths to love and enable his children, his love for family extended to many of the people he came into contact with throughout his life. He would always make time to mentor, share scripture, and support those who needed it.
When he could pull himself away from his professional work, he enjoyed nothing more than being in God’s splendor outdoors: whether it was off-roading in parks across the US, flying through mountain ranges, or practical self defense and shooting courses in the beautiful deserts of Arizona, Hartie never stopped doing what he loved.
His surviving family includes his mother, Nona Louise Frye Spence; sister, Catherine Louise Spence Sokora and husband Thomas Joseph Sokora, brother, James Stephen Spence and wife Monica Cecilia Guerra Gomez Spence; wife, Kimberly Davidson Spence; and children Rebekah Lynne Spence, Arthur Hartie Spence III and wife Anna Blake Spence, Tanner Girard Spence and wife Meredith Avery Spence, Hyder Travis Spence and wife Anna Katherine Spence.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to First Baptist Church Lafayette, Royal Ambassadors 1100 Lee Ave, Lafayette, LA (337) 233-1412, https://fbclaf.org/
