Editor, Gazette-Journal:

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of the citizens of the Middle Peninsula who dug deep in their pockets this past weekend to make our annual fundraising event, the Forget-Me Not Fund Drive, a success. I know that during these economic times that extra money is tough to come by and even tougher to donate, because there is always something the extra money can be used for.

The citizens of the Middle Peninsula are very generous and patriotic. I can assure all who donated that 100 percent of those donations go to help support these programs at the VA Hospital in Hampton. Due to sequestration, the VA has been affected like many other government agencies, and the donations raised go to assist those men and women who are in the care of the VA medical system.

I would like to also thank those businesses and their managers—the ABC stores, Farm Fresh and Walmart—for allowing our members to set up their collection stations. Without their...