Donald Dalton, of King George, thought he was doing something nice for his daughter before Christmas when he withdrew $700 in cash from BB&T bank in Dahlgren. His daughter, Ashley, was not working since she had just had a baby and needed a car as the one she had been driving was not working.
It was Dec. 23 and Dalton wanted to do something nice for Ashley. He found what he thought was a car they wanted through a car magazine, called the car’s owner, withdrew the money, and he and his daughter set out to go bring the car home. That was when this story of panic, loss and sorrow began to unfold.

For some reason Dalton opened the door of his car when he was driving along Route 206 near Gautier’s Body Shop and unbeknownst to him the envelope containing the money fell out. So, when they went to make the purchase, the money was gone and the deal fell through.
Without the money, Dalton said, “I fixed Ashley’s car up for $250.”
So, the good deed for his daughter got done at a modest price, but the $700 was still gone.
“I am on disability and that was a lot of money to me,” Dalton said.
Because he is facing a back operation, the loss of the money was really troubling.
But Christmas came and went and life went on for the Dalton family. Dalton had decided he would never see his money again. That is until just last week.
Then he got a call from Sergeant John Davis of the King George Sheriff’s office on Monday, Jan. 11.
“Sgt. Davis asked me if I had lost some money and I described it for him,” Dalton said. “There were 35 $20 bills in an envelope from BB&T and that is what someone had found and taken it to the Sheriff’s office. It was someone from NCIS, I think.
“When they found the money, Sgt. Davis took it to BB&T to see if anyone there remembered who had gotten the $700 in cash from the bank. The bank’s teller, Roshanda Abney,  said she remembered the very man who had taken the money out of his account. They called me and I verified that I had the receipt for the money and they gave it back to me.”
“I never thought I would see that money again,” Dalton said. He just couldn’t believe that the money had lain in the ditch along Route 206 since Dec. 23, through all the snow, traffic and more, but the 35 $20 bills were still there, as was the envelope in which they had been placed.
So, while Christmas has come and gone, the good Fairy seems to be somewhere these days. Never fear, there is still goodness and honesty left in the hearts of many people you may never know. For Dalton, it was a miracle; for the finder of the money, it was just the right thing to do. For everyone who reads this story, it is a reminder that there are still good people in this world and everyone can still be included in that group if they work at it day by day.
— Ruth Herrink