Economic snapshot of our community

Ventura County residents are facing the economic meltdown with a mix of fear and resolve. “I’m religious so I try not to connect so much with the negative,” said Howard Cummings, a Ventura father of three and carpenter who has seen work dry up over the past six months. “I try to look on the bright side and have faith, but it is hard.” Others aren’t weighed down by the sinking economy. They see opportunities where others see only misery. “I am a positive person, so the glass is half-full for me,” said Lee Cole, chairman, president and chief executive of Calavo Growers Inc. in Santa Paula. But whether they are well-to-do or working class, many residents don’t know what to feel. The dizzying trillion-dollar drop in stock market value, the mortgage implosion in the banking industry and the unprecedented $700 billion government bailout are enough to bring home the idea to even the most optimistic that the economic peril is serious. Last week, The Star talked to middle-class families, single moms, working stiffs and corporate executives to get a snapshot of how the economic hard times are hitting home. “It changes your frame of mind when you go to spend money,” said Sueanne Chadbourne, a mother of a 3-year-old who with her husband purchased a home late last year. For full story visit: http://www.venturacountystar.com/news/2008/oct/19/economic-snapshot-of-our-community-hard-times/