Veterans Assistance Fund Needs Community's Help

It's said that small gestures go a long way, like $25.50 in gas money so that a veteran could drive up to a food bank and be able to go to work for a week.

It's a true story and one that Carl Arthur, chairman of a new veterans assistance fund, shared with the Highlands Today.

Numerous such instances undoubtedly exist in Highlands County, where 20,000 veterans, or about one-fifth of the population, reside.

Sometimes $25.50 is all they need to get a jump-start for the day. Sometimes the need is more.
Whatever it is -- the three-month-old Highlands County Veterans Assistance Fund -- is helping veterans, many aging and with lifelong ailments, get back on their feet.

Organizers have been particular about giving out the money only for emergency help. Since early June, the fund has helped dozens of veterans pay utility bills, buy food or gas.

An upcoming fundraiser is now giving the community a chance to participate in building the kitty.
Veterans will tell you they always help each other, but there's no reason the rest of us cannot chip in.
We owe it to our soldiers, sailors and pilots who left something of themselves behind in battlefields and never got it back.

So far, contributions from veterans groups and civic organizations have brought in about $4,900.
Just over $2,400 has been spent, with most of the aid given by buying food or paying a utility bill of between $25 to $75.

While the fund has a good "working balance," more could be done to shore it up.

Tickets are available for the first fundraiser, set for Oct. 6 at the Sebring Knights of Columbus Hall.
The group also takes in monetary donations.

So the next time you feel bad about a U.S. soldier dying or hurting in Iraq, whip out your check book and write out a donation. Every $5 to $10 counts.