Judge Don R. Ash

Boys & Girls Clubs in Tennessee - 2014 Hall of Fame Inductee


Judge Don R. Ash

In 1986, the Boys Club of Rutherford, would not have been established if it were not for the vision of creating a safe place for young boys to attend. That vision was set by none other than Honorable Don R Ash, who was instrumental in ensuring the establishment of a Boys Club becoming a reality for our community. Judge Ash has served on the Board of Directors for 18 of the 24 years the Boys & Girls Clubs of Rutherford County existed. Judge Ash has dedicated himself to the organization by serving in numerous leadership positions throughout the years.  Judge Ash is the only board member who has been elected to serve as President of the organization for two separate terms.  Other leadership positions held by Judge Ash include board secretary and treasurer. Today, the Boys & Girl Clubs of   Rutherford County is a thriving organization that is continually serving more children each day.  The credit goes to Mr. Ash who had the vision 24 years ago to open a Boys Club in Rutherford County.    
In addition to serving for his local Boys & Girls Club, Judge Don Ash has served the Boys & Girls Clubs throughout the state of Tennessee by serving as the Tennessee Alliance President.  It was during his tenure the Tennessee Alliance saw one of the largest increases in revenue that was passed on to local organizations in the Boys & Girls Club Movement, thus ensuring the financial stability for our Tennessee Boys & Girls Club organizations.  
Community involvement is also important to Judge Ash as evidenced by his membership in numerous community and civic projects including the Murfreesboro Noon Rotary, the United Way of Rutherford County, the Tennessee Drug Court Advisory Committee, The Tennessee Child Support Task Force, the Middle Tennessee State University Foundation and served as it’s President,. In 2009, Judge Ash was awarded Boys & Girls Clubs of Americas Service To Youth Award and the National Silver Medallion Award.  His involvement has brought numerous recognitions including Tennessee Jaycees Outstanding Young Tennessean Award (1993), Lifetime Achievement Award for Community Service (1999), Award of Excellence by the Mediation Association of Tennessee, Inc. (1999), 2001 Distinguished Service to Families Award by the Tennessee Association of Marriage and Family Therapy, and most recently the 2002 Rutherford Pinnacle Award from the Leadership Rutherford Organization.
Judge Ash was elected to the bench in the Sixteenth Judicial District in 1994 as a Circuit Court Judge after serving as a partner in the law firm of Bolin and Ash.  A graduate of Middle Tennessee State University and the University of Memphis School of Law, Judge Ash went on to become the first judge in Tennessee to complete the Master’s Degree program at the University at Nevada-Reno May 2000.  He has recently been honored to serve as a faculty member of that university.   
Judge Ash has proven to be a leader in his judicial district by serving as presiding judge over the Domestic Violence Court and the Drug Court.  Ash has also served on the Court of the Judiciary, Tennessee Judicial Conference Executive Committee, Tennessee Bar Association’s Family Law Committee, Rutherford/Cannon County Bar Association, Tennessee Bar Fellow and was most recently elected as President-elect for the Tennessee Judicial Conference for 2003-2004.   
Judge Ash is an author of several publications including his 1997 thesis for the University of Memphis Law School entitled “A Bridge Over Troubled Water: Changing the Custody Law in Tennessee” which was the basis for the drafting and adoption of the Parenting Plan for the State of Tennessee.   Judge Ash was also instrumental in Public Chapter 564 regarding improvements to the Court of Judiciary and in developing the Tennessee Bar Association’s Online Continuing Legal Education Program, “Tennessee’s Parenting Plan Overview”.
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