To the editor:

Thank you for your editorial pointing out that in the wake of the wonderful response to the victims of Hurricane Katrina, the ongoing needs of local charitable organizations remain very real. You have raised a very vital point, and you cited many examples of our fine Lawrence organizations whose needs are extremely compelling here at home.

Not least among them is the Salvation Army, which has been on the scene in the Gulf area feeding and assisting tens of thousands of the hurricane victims every day. But the Salvation Army has also been serving the needy of Lawrence and Douglas County for more than 120 years. A community fund drive is now under way to build a much-needed, new facility for the ever-increasing needs of those among us who are in distress. This campaign, along with the others you named, has certainly seen the effects of giving being shifted to hurricane relief.

We gratefully applaud the support for those displaced by Katrina. At the same time, we join with you in your appeal to the good people of the Lawrence area to remember the needs and respond to the requests of our local charities like the Salvation Army building campaign, the United Way drive and all the others who so urgently need that support.

Don and Alice Ann Johnson

Lawrence