The adversity Anderson University graduate Ron Aderhold has faced in life has given him a determination to sacrificially help others in need.
Aderhold, a combat veteran of the first Gulf War (Operations Desert Storm and Shield), spent years living with pain from a combat-induced disability.
“With the old school drill sergeants who were combat veterans, you were taught to suck it up—the pain doesn’t mean anything. And over the years you just dealt with it,” he said.
But by 2025, the injuries he sustained during his service had become debilitating. Pinched nerves and spinal damage left him unable to perform simple tasks like putting on socks or turning his head. When doctors told him he needed major surgery, they issued an ultimatum to lose 80-100 pounds.
“I’m not a person who can just sit on a treadmill and look at a TV,” Aderhold says. “I need a mission.”
He found that mission from generations of family tradition.
Aderhold learned the craft of canning from his mother and grandmothers, who preserved fruits and vegetables during summers in Wisconsin and Michigan. What he once viewed as a childhood chore became the foundation of a remarkable service project. Using his family’s decades-old canner and a canning book passed down from his grandmother, he produced jars of pickles, salsa, jams, peaches, pears, applesauce, spaghetti sauce, chili base and tomato soup—numbering in the thousands.
This spirit of service is nothing new for Aderhold, who works with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and has had administrative roles at Veterans hospitals in West Virginia and South Carolina. Aderhold continues to work daily on behalf of Veterans as a Rating Veteran’s Service Representative (RVSR). A Rating Veterans Service Representative, an employee of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) who evaluates evidence and decides disability ratings for veterans. While earning a Healthcare Administration degree and an MBA at Anderson University—where he graduated as valedictorian—Aderhold’s path was shaped by a desire to fix shortcomings in veteran care he witnessed firsthand.
His philanthropic journey gained national momentum during an internship in Washington, D.C., where he founded Operation Bedroll. After discovering a massive funding shortfall for the HUD-VASH program, Aderhold stepped up to provide homeless veterans transitioning into housing with the basics most people take for granted, such as laundry detergent, dish soap, and bedding. His work was so impactful that he was invited to speak before the Senate Oversight Committee and served as the keynote speaker for the Washington Center’s Gala Awards.
Dressing in full formal attire made Aderhold feel like Sinatra, and his audience was composed of top military brass and members of Congress. He quips that his speech ran 20 minutes over because he was having issues with the TelePrompTer keeping up with him.
Back home in South Carolina, Aderhold’s commitment has only deepened through Operation Giving Hope to Our Heroes. Partnering with local businesses like Publix, Aderhold assembled 250 food boxes for VA employees who were struggling during government shutdowns, ensuring they could provide Thanksgiving dinners for their families.
His latest initiative, Operation Preserving Hope for Heroes, focuses on the unsung heroes—medical staff who care for veterans daily. After his own successful back surgery, he outpaced his nurses just five hours post-op. Aderhold donated thousands of jars to the Greenwood Veterans Center and plans on making a donation to the Veterans center in McCormick County also in the name of the medical teams at Self Regional whom preformed his surgery and the surgery of many of the Veterans who use the foodbank.
The views and opinions expressed by the author herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs or the United States.
Clockwise from left: Aderhold serving as keynote speaker for the Washington Center’s Gala Awards. South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson and U.S. Representative Sheri Biggs recognize Aderhold for his work. Aderhold canning in his kitchen. Jars of canned goods in Aderhold’s living room awaiting distribution.
Aderhold with Jim and Barb Husted, who assisted him in preparing thousands of jars and attended the ceremony where he was recognized by U.S. Representative Sheri Biggs and South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson.