Editor, Gazette-Journal:

November and December are months in which we often take time to consider the needs of others who may be less fortunate than ourselves. This year, more so than in previous years, the community has come together to help provide for the needs and wishes of youth who find themselves in the foster care system.

Brad Hudgins, chairman of the Social Services Board, sought and received needed support of citizens and businesses in fulfilling the mission of providing for each child. While Hudgins’s dealership, Riverside Walter Reed Hospital and the Abingdon Ruritan Club have participated for many years, the need continued to rise.

This year, some of the others that greatly helped were Chesapeake Bank in Gloucester and Mathews, Scott’s Tractor Service, Hogg Funeral Home, Colonial Virginia Bank, Jim Miller Construction Inc., Miller’s Septic Service Inc. and Smith’s Florist. Together, these businesses and organizations—with the help of m...