To the Editor:

As the commander of the Veterans of Foreign Wars Franklin Post 4411, I would like to give my personal thank-you to the community of Franklin and the surrounding area.

We recently held our annual Buddy Poppy drive, which we hold one weekend a year. This drive is to raise money for needy veterans and their families. Each Buddy Poppy is hand assembled by a disabled veteran, from whom we purchased them.

We then sell them for donations, of which 100 percent goes to our relief fund, which is used to help veterans in need.

We were quite concerned that our relief fund would soon be depleted due to the mill shutting down last year. We were always allowed to sell for one day in front of the mill, and that was our largest collection year after year.

I am very pleased to say that we did not skip a beat this year due to the generosity of the community. This just goes to show once again that you can’t kill a great town.

It has been a trying year for all of this area, but you have shown that we will persevere.

I also want to thank the businesses that allowed us the opportunity to stand in front of their stores: the ABC store, Farm Fresh, Walmart and Food Lion.

Through the help of these stores and you, the citizens, we can ensure that veterans in need get some relief.

Kevin L. Meyers
Commander of VFW Post 4411
Franklin