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Ashland lawmaker dies of brain tumor ASHLAND (AP) - Kip Lombard, a former state representative, water-law expert and Ashland resident, has died of a malignant brain tumor. He was 62. Lombard, who died Thursday, was diagnosed with the tumor six months ago but continued to play golf, said his wife, Bernadette. "The only sign he had was that his left leg was losing strength," she recalled. "It was messing up his golf game." Lombard served as a state representative for District 52 from 1977 to 1985. State legislators on Thursday passed a resolution honoring the Republican known for his ability to work with lawmakers in both parties. "He would compromise on any issue but his principles," said state Sen. Len Hannon, R-Ashland, a longtime family friend. "Integrity that epitomizes Kip Lombard." Lombard left the Legislature in 1985 to spend more time with his family and to concentrate on professional interests of water law and estate planning. A former lobbyist for the Oregon Water Resources Congress, Lombard became well-versed in all aspects of water issues, Hannon said. At his death, he was vice-chair of the American Bar Association Water Committee and was co-chair of planning the 2003 annual Water Law Conference in San Diego, Calif. "Kip Lombard probably knew more about water law than any single person in Oregon," Hannon said. "It affected court decisions, legislation and water users from orchardists to cities." As a lawyer with the Ashland firm Lombard, Knudsen & Holtey, Lombard was known for his analytical mind and his ethics, said partner Jud Holtey. Lombard was born Benjamin "Kip" Lombard Jr. on Sept. 2, 1940 in Seattle, Wash. He moved to Ashland with his family as a young boy and attended the city's schools, graduating from Ashland High School in 1958. He graduated with honors from the University of Oregon in 1962, a member of the school's first Honor College. He graduated from the University of Michigan Law School in 1965. He began practicing law in 1967 with a Portland firm. "He accomplished a lot of his goals," his wife said. "He wanted to be an expert in some area of his profession, and he wanted a strong family, and he had all of those things." The couple has three sons, Christopher, Ian and Russell, and an 8-month-old grandson, Samuel. A funeral mass for Lombard will be at 1:30 p.m. Saturday at Our Lady of the Mountain Catholic Church in Ashland. LINKS: DAILY TIDINGS: Main | News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Opinion | Columnists | AP News | Subscribe | Archives | Weather | Classifieds | Contact Us | Privacy REVELS: Main | Calendar | Dining | Movies | T.V. OTHER: Road Cams Copyright 2003 Ashland Daily Tidings 541.482.3456. 1661 Siskiyou Blvd., Ashland, OR 97520. Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. - Advertisers -