ASHLAND — You can see the pride in Ed Ashley’s eyes when he talks about his 18 years as a soldier.

That look changes, however, when he explains his family’s circumstances in the many months since he was severely injured by an improvised explosive device in Iraq.

Ashley isn’t bitter, although he has traveled far beyond frustration as he’s struggled to get the benefits he is entitled. His family has been patient as he made repeated phone calls, signed forms and dealt with the required red tape. Nearly a year ago, Ashley said they thought their problems were over when he received a benefits check. However, he has since been required to repay that money at a rate of more than $900 per month. With no relief in sight, his family is now scrambling to figure out what to do next and seeking help from his hometown as they wait for the government to fulfill its end of the deal.

“I never asked for help because I believed in the system,” he said this week while talking about his situation and reflecting on his family’s tradition of hard work, including grandfathers on both sides of his family who worked at Armco for decades. “I hate to ask for help. No one in our family has the financial means to really help us, but they’ve all done what they could.”

Along with his wife, Leigh Ann, and their 5-year-old son Nickolas, Ashley is now living in two windowless basement rooms at a relative’s home, trying to make sure he has enough gas money to get to his twice-a-week appointments at the VA Hospital in Huntington. Along the way, they say many have reached out to do whatever they could to help.

“I’ve had a lot of support really, ” Ashley said, expressing his particular appreciation for Dr. Jesus “Ken” Querubin at Bellefonte Medical Center, who has told him he “wishes he could do more” to help local veterans. Leigh Ann Ashley said she especially appreciates the role played by Col. Tim Hill, who heard about their problems and immediately picked up a telephone and put them in touch with people who may be able to help her husband get his due. Congressman Geoff Davis (R-4th) has also worked to help the family, Ashley said.

The former combat engineer and 1988 graduate of Paul G. Blazer High School can count a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star Medal in addition to numerous commendations and achievement medals among the Army’s recognition of a job well done. He also deals with the pain and other consequences from three crushed vertebrae and a traumatic brain injury among the souvenirs of his service.

“I deal with chronic pain every day. I’ve just learned to never quit,” he said, talking about his desire to get through the therapy needed for his brain injury and his desire to go back to school and earn a degree in elementary education.

In spite of his injuries, Ashley wanted to remain in the active military although he was deemed unable. He doesn’t blink when discussing his love of military service.

“I would do it again in a heartbeat,” he said, adding he has remained close to many of the men he served with and witnessed other soldiers facing some of the same challenges he is dealing with. “I know guys who are hurt and they’re still in and suffering through it because they don’t want to get put in this situation. I have a friend in Ohio with a serious head injury that needs to be taken care of.”

Megan George, chapter president for Operation Homefront of Kentucky and Tennessee, said the Ashley family has earned his community’s support.

“We have a wounded warrior in Ashland in need of immediate assistance and are reaching out to the local community for help. He is married and has a 5-year-old son. This hero is an 18-year Army veteran wounded in Iraq. He suffered brain and spinal injuries. He was medically discharged from the army and is going through the VA ratings process,” George said.

“When transitioning from active duty pay to the VA pay system, there is often a gap in pay. Due to the lack of military pay for months, this hero lost his home and they moved in with family. Due to the terminal illness of the family member, the wounded warrior and his family will be homeless in a matter of weeks. The wounded warrior is also in need of uncovered dental care and the 5-year-old son is in need of winter clothing.”

Operation Homefront, a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping military troops, wounded warriors and their families, is asking for community support to help the Ashleys through this crisis. That support can be in the form of donations to assist with a security deposit, first month’s rent and utility deposits, a dentist to provide some pro-bono dental care, or gift cards for things like food, clothing and gasoline.

Donations can be made online at www.operationhomefront.net/kentucky, and donors who want to help the Ashley family must indicate ASHLAND in the comments section. Donations and gift cards may also be dropped off at Golden Oaks Memorial Gardens or Rose Hill Burial Park in Ashland. For more information about Operation Homefront contact George at (931) 802-3528.

“It’s not that we’re seeking money,” Leigh Ann said, noting they could equally benefit from the assistance of someone who may be able to help them with issues including financing for another vehicle. “We need help, but we want to help ourselves.”