Happy birthday wishes to James Pridgen, Sept. 20, Drakes Branch; Reece Toombs, Sept. 20, Randolph; T’aquaysha Walker, Sept. 21, Drakes Branch; Pat Nichols, Sept. 22, Randolph; Marquise Armstrong, Sept. 22, Keysville; Denise Pridgen, Sept. 22, Drakes Branch; David Duffey, Sept. 23; Dorothy Reid, Sept. 24, Scuffletown; Bessie Mitchell, Sept. 24, Scottsburg; Kathy Brogdon, Sept. 25, Nathalie; Dominque Foster, Sept. 25, Pamplin; Shania Armstrong, Sept. 26, Keysville; Junior Mosley, Sept. 26, Randolph; Leah Snead Hurt, Sept. 26, Richmond; Jackie Fields, Sept. 26, Richmond; Jackie McCargo, Sept. 26, Drakes Branch; and Brigett Lee Allen, Sept. 26, Decatur, Georgia. I wish all of you many more happy birthdays. Happy birthday!

Get-well wishes to all of the sick and the shut in. I hope you all are well soon, up and about. You are in our prayers.

Anniversary wishes to Willard and Gayle Inge, Sept. 26, 46 years, Saxe. I wish you many more happy years together with God’s blessings. Happy anniversary!

Sympathy to all of the families who lost a loved one recently. Our heartfelt prayers and good wishes go out to every home in your time of need. You have our deepest sympathy.

Thought for the week: Having some where to go is home. Having someone to love is family. Having both is a blessing.

TOO BLESSED TO BE STRESSED

We sometimes in life we feel stressed and in the same time we are blessed. Things seem bad at first, then when we stop and look back at what seems so wrong, it wasn’t as bad after all.

When we see things happening to other people and not us, we are blessed. Stop stressing over problems. Someone, somewhere is going through something more than you.

A problem seems so bad at first. Then when you get the problem fixed, it wasn’t so bad after all. God has blessed us in so many ways. We don’t need to be stressed, because we are so blessed.

News is due by noon Friday. Any news received after this time will not be included in this column. News can be submitted by calling Virginia Freeman at (434) 568-0596.

Virginia Freeman is a community columnist for The Charlotte Gazette. She can be reached at vstars@pure.net.