In a period when joblessness is common and businesses are closing left and right, some of Gainesville's nonprofit organizations are feeling the crunch.
Alachua Habitat for Humanity, a local branch of the national organization that builds and repairs houses for the poor, is struggling against decreased funding and staff.
Courtney Middleton, the manager of the Alachua Habitat for Humanity Thrift Store, said despite the fact that people are often forced to buy used goods during financial crisis, sales are down.
The store sales, which are usually about $2,000 a day in a healthy economy, have dropped to as low as $200 and average about $700.
"We have a lot of people coming in, but they still want stuff for cheaper than we can give," Middleton said.
The main source of income for Habitat for Humanity, which has built more than 100 homes in the county since January, is donations. The regular monthly donations are continuing to come in, but spontaneous donations are down, said Peg Iwata, Habitat for Humanity's resource and development manager.
The decline has inspired staff to take new approaches to fundraising by hosting events such as auctions, pancake breakfasts and walk-a-thons. One event the organization will be holding is a large auction called Signature Event 2009 on Sept. 25 in High Springs.
But despite the efforts to make up the money, Iwata said the group has been forced to take a new approach to its work.
Rather than focusing on buying chunks of land and building neighborhoods, she said, they are beginning to shift back toward buying small pieces of land or having them donated and asking for people in the community to help out.
But some organizations, such as Rebuilding Together North Central Florida, a fellow home-repair organization, are not feeling strained from the recession, said Melisa Miller, the group's director.
"We are a smaller organization that hasn't grown as large as some of the others have," Miller said. "We are already used to working on a shoestring."
Rebuilding Together is a 4-year-old organization that specializes in emergency home repairs, accessibility for the elderly and energy efficiency.
Miller said she believes one of the reasons the organization has been able to withstand the economic condition is that they help improve what has already been built rather than doing any development themselves, much like Habitat for Humanity's new plan.
"It's very interesting for us, because we have been receiving more donations than ever," Miller said. "I think a lot of times when there's a recession people concentrate on what's most important."
