Powhatan Veteran Honored for #StillServing

Powhatan veteran Tom Ashmore `is being honored for dedication to country and community in the VFW #StillServing campaign. The national Veterans of Foreign Wars #StillServing (vfw.org/stillserving) campaign recognizes veterans who continue to serve in their community after the military.

Ashmore is #StillServing by teaching older veterans Cane Fu, a new form of self-defense specifically designed for senior citizens. Ashmore began his martial arts training at the age of 14 with Judo. He continued until he entered the U.S. Marines at the age of 17. He excelled in hand-to-hand combat training and was asked to help train his fellow Marines and was later deployed to Vietnam where he experienced real life hand-to-hand combat for survival. He received three Purple Hearts for his service in Vietnam. After the military, he became a police officer and attended many defensive tactics training classes. Believing there was something missing in the classes, he started his own training business to educate others using real-life scenarios.

Today Ashmore only teaches veterans, both abled and disabled, self-defense, exercises and stretches using the cane to get stronger, live longer and defend against not only a physical attack but slips, trips and falls. Ashmore says he is #StillServing because he loves his veteran brothers and sisters.

The Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) launched #StillServing, a campaign to highlight the many ways America’s veterans continue to serve in their local communities after transitioning from the military, in February 2020. What started as an awareness campaign has become a social movement as veterans across the country continue to step up to share stories of how they are still serving. More than 1,000 veterans’ stories have been shared through news coverage, website features and magazine and newsletter articles.

“Our original intent here was to recognize and showcase the important ongoing service of the lifeblood of our organization - our members, but the campaign quickly took hold and expanded well beyond the confines of our membership to veterans and advocates around the world,” said Tim Borland, VFW commander-in-chief. “The participation and interest this campaign has garnered has exceeded all expectations, and it continues to gain momentum.”

According to the 2021 Veterans Civic Health Index1, veterans average nearly 30 percent more volunteer hours per year and outpace civilians 15 percent in charitable donations. Additionally, nearly 40 percent more veterans belong to a group working on community issues and veterans are more like to be registered to vote (7 percent) and have recently voted (6 percent).

Since its launch, more than 2 million people have engaged with the campaign and it has gained the attention of individuals worldwide, recently earning a Grand Award at the 19th International Business Association for the highest marks of more than 3,700 nominations to the business awards.

Building on a legacy of service that spans more than a century, #StillServing represents the heart of the VFW and its members, and conveys what today’s VFW embodies. The VFW encourages all veterans to share stories on social media using #StillServing to show how they continue to answer the call to serve in ways big and small. In addition, family or friends are asked to use #StillServing in social media posts to honor a veteran in their lives who believes the spirit of service transcends military life.

The VFW urges Americans to visit vfw.org/StillServing to learn more about the campaign, make a shareable image honoring veterans in their lives, watch videos of VFW members making a difference and see a collection of user-generated content.

12021 Veterans Civic Health Index