Not that anything I can say would change anyones mind, but here is how I see it... There are opportunities for folks who wish to go on a paid relic hunt, to go and dig Civil War relics in areas that they don't normally have access to, they pay money for two or three days worth of hunting. How is this different than paying your GPAA dues, then paying for your GPAA trip, working your butt off for five days in a communal effort and at the end of the week, you may, if you're lucky get a small vial of gold flakes that covers part of your expenses? There isn't any... It's all in what you choose to do with your time and money....
As for the paid relic hunts, there are expenses that have to be paid for to do this type thing. Most land owners in Civil War Virginia know what occurred on their land, and nearly all of them attempt to protect their land from the trespassing relic hunter. Because of tresspassers in the past, a lot of these landowners have a disdain for detectorists. It takes a lot of time and effort to get some landowners to open up enough to ask permission. The "local" relic hunters have taken the initiative to research locations, talk to landowners to gain their trust enough to allow this type of opportunity for others. The landowners (typically farmers) are paid to "lease" their land for the duration of the hunt. This is usually thousands of dollars. The landowner doesn't want any chance of a lawsuit if someone gets hurt, so the promoter has to carry liability insurance covering the participants. Have you priced up a million dollar liability policy lately

A site survey has to be done to set boundaries, don't want any trespassing on adjoining land, that would be a public relations nightmare for the promoter and detectorists if that happened at the wrong place... Have to mark the boundaries with flags, tape, other markings. Have to bring in Port-O-Johns & trash cans for the participants. The promoters typically have medical and security staffs on site for the duration. The promoter also has to hold a prehunt meeting to get everyone organized and to set the rules and boundaries. Have you priced meeting halls or convention rooms at hotels? At these meetings literature regarding the site is handed out, so you have printing costs. A lot of times, they provide a few snacks and water bottles for participants, lunch is sometimes provided as well. All of this, plus more I'm sure is very costly. If the promoter, for all his time and hard work can pocket a small amount, then they deserve it for their efforts.
In my opinion, having the opportunity to go onto some of these sites, walk in the footprints of our forefathers and having the chance to recover some relics that otherwise I wouldn't have a chance to do, makes the money paid worth it. If I lived in that area, so rich in history, then perhaps I wouldn't do it, I'd attempt to make my own contacts and detect those lands....