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\u201cVietnam changed me forever,\u201d he said. \u201cEverybody who went over there left a part of themselves behind.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
His military experience prepared him for the life of a lawman.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe leadership skills, the instincts, those carried into law enforcement,\u201d he said. \u201cI truly believe God had His hand on my shoulder the whole time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Back home, Ashe rose quickly through the ranks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He began as a deputy sheriff in 1972, became a sergeant, then chief deputy, and later served as chief of detectives with the Lebanon Police Department.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In 1982, he was elected Wilson County sheriff, an office he held for an unprecedented eight consecutive terms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Throughout his career, Ashe worked on high-profile cases and made tough decisions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He helped take down the notorious \u201cSouthside Rapist,\u201d investigated the Melrose murders and later solved a 40-year-old cold case involving the murder of a childhood friend\u2019s brother. This investigation culminated in an exhumation and forensic analysis at the University of Tennessee\u2019s body farm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But his boldest campaign may have been his effort to \u201cclean up\u201d Bluebird Road, once a haven for drugs, gambling, and prostitution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat I thought would take six months took four years,\u201d he said. \u201cIt wasn\u2019t easy and there were attempts on my life, but I made a promise to the people, and I kept it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n One of the most notorious gangs even placed a $50,000 contract on Ashe\u2019s life in the 1980s; those who sent him the dead flowers in the hospital after he\u2019d been struck by lightning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe didn\u2019t back down,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Incredibly, lightning struck Ashe not once, but three times. Once at the age of 8 and twice on the same day in 1989 while moving hay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAfter that, nobody wanted to stand near me in a storm,\u201d he joked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He spent several days in the hospital with burns and fractures, but soon returned to work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI guess the Lord wasn\u2019t finished with me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n For Ashe, the rewards of service came not from medals or headlines, but from the people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019ve had inmates stop me in the store to thank me for treating them with respect. Families I helped thank me for bringing them justice. That\u2019s all the reward I need,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Even in retirement, Ashe continues to serve on multiple county boards and committees. He\u2019s written a memoir, \u201cAshes of Bluebird,\u201d and is working on a second book, \u201cDaylight Moon,\u201d about his Vietnam experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When asked what advice he\u2019d give his younger self, Ashe said: \u201cRemember how you got here. Stay close to your faith. Do the right thing when nobody\u2019s looking. And spend more time with your family.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n What does he hope his legacy will be?<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI hope they say I was kind, that I was devoted to serving others, that I could be trusted, and that I gave it everything I had.\u201d GN<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n To purchase \u201cAshes of Bluebird Road\u201dor to learn more about Terry Ashe, visit ashesofbluebird.com<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" THE FLOWERS weren\u2019t just dead \u2014 they were a message. Wilting in a hospital vase after his third lightning strike, Sheriff Terry Ashe stared at the bouquet, sent anonymously by enemies who knew he was vulnerable. The sheriff had just shut down a major motorcycle gang\u2019s rally that would\u2019ve brought drugs and violence into Wilson […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":39,"featured_media":22713,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-22710","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-stories"],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/lebanon\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2025\/07\/2-1-1024x683.jpg\")