KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States remembers the legacy of John Furgess, a distinguished Army officer, veteran advocate and past VFW Commander-in-Chief.
John began a lifetime of public service after earning his bachelor’s degree in business from Middle Tennessee State University in 1965. He entered the U.S. Army the same year where he served until 1970, to include a tour in Vietnam with a military intelligence unit assigned to the Americal Division headquarters at Chu Lai. For his service, he received numerous military honors, including the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, Army Commendation Medal, Army Achievement Medal, and the Vietnam Service Medal, among others.
Following active-duty service, John continued his military career in the Tennessee Army National Guard, ultimately retiring in 1993 at the rank of colonel after 28 years of combined service. He also completed the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, in 1979.
In 1970, he joined VFW Post 1970 in Nashville, Tennessee, becoming a Life member in 1974. Over the years, he held numerous leadership roles within the organization, including Post Commander, District Commander, and Tennessee Department Commander (1978–1979), becoming the first Vietnam veteran to serve as the state’s commander. He later served on the VFW National Council of Administration and was appointed to multiple national committees.
After his military service, he continued his commitment to veterans as assistant commissioner for the Tennessee Department of Veterans Affairs, a role he held for two decades until his retirement in October 2002, overseeing 11 field offices across the state.
John was elected to the organization’s highest office on August 20, 2004, during the 105th VFW National Convention in Cincinnati, Ohio. The following year, he escorted a group of veterans on the VFW’s inaugural Purple Heart Return to Vietnam healing retreat, and traveled to Iraq, making him the first VFW National Commander to visit deployed service members in the region since the start of the Iraq War.
Beyond the VFW, he was active in several veterans service organizations, including Disabled American Veterans, AMVETS, the Military Officers Association of America, the American Legion, the Americal Division Veterans Association and Vietnam Veterans of America.
He will long be remembered for his more than 60 years of dedicated military service and veterans advocacy at the local, state and national levels.
Read his obituary.