OUR VIEW: Culpeper’s helping spirit shines through

» Generosity of local residents helps others to live better, and remember to protect yourself against the flu this season

Hundreds of area students stand a good chance of having a generally healthy winter, thanks to the efforts of Rappahannock-Rapidan Health District workers and volunteers.

The district has been administering H1N1 vaccine to students and staff members in local schools since the beginning of the month.

As of last Monday, the district had given the swine flu vaccine to 832 public school students and two-thirds of the private school students who had submitted permission slips.

We applaud the district for its effort to help keep our community healthy.

Remember, the priority groups for the vaccine are:

- All pregnant women

- All people ages 6 months to 24 years

- People who live with or care for children younger than six months

- People 25 to 64 with health conditions that create a higher risk of complications from the flu

- Health care and emergency personnel

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One local woman is doing her part to help people halfway around the world.

For four months, Felecia Chavez of Culpeper will serve the troops at Balad Air Force Base north of Baghdad on behalf of the Red Cross.

She has 25 years of experience with the humanitarian organization, most recently as outreach coordinator for Culpeper and Madison counties.  She also served in Saudi Arabia with the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division during Operation Desert Shield.

We thank her for her service.

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Kristen Johnson of Culpeper said she felt a little lighter last Wednesday.

She should. She lost her 11-inch-long ponytail.

Johnson donated her tresses to Locks of Love, a nonprofit organization that provides natural-hair wigs to children with illnesses that leave them with long-term hair loss.

She literally gave of herself to help keep a sick child’s spirits up. That’s very commendable.