Donations Rising Despite Recession, Charities Report : Philanthropy: Significant gains by United Way are mirrored by other groups across the county. But contributions from federal workers are less certain.

Ventura County remains mired in an economic recession, but workers around the county are opening their wallets wide as the season of giving gets under way, local charity leaders say.

Early results from United Way’s annual campaign show a significant jump in pledges compared to last year, said Marti Kessler, United Way’s campaign director.

A Camarillo firm that sells components used for satellite dish systems raised $55,000 in payroll deductions and corporate donations this year, a 23% increase over last year, Kessler said. And employees at a Target store in Simi Valley anted up $9,500 in their first fund-raising campaign, she said.

The gains at United Way are being mirrored at most other large social service organizations throughout Ventura County. The Red Cross, Catholic Charities and Food Share have all reported that the level of giving is higher this year than last, or at least that it has not dropped.

“There’s a lot of good news,” Kessler said. “I think people are getting used to the economic uncertainty. This year there is more of a settled feeling.”

Less certain are United Way donations from federal workers and employees in oil-related industries, she said. And, skittish about the Clinton Administration’s pledge to trim government, employees at the U.S. Postal Service, the two Navy bases in the county, Social Security and other federal offices are more reluctant to part with their money, Kessler said.

And the director of one of Ventura County’s oldest charities, the Salvation Army, said donations are slightly down compared to the same period last year.

In an effort to boost donations, bell ringers with Christmas kettles have already staked out positions at busy shopping malls instead of waiting until the day after Thanksgiving, said Salvation Army Major Eddie Patterson.

Patterson said the Salvation Army has been busier than usual this year helping those hurt by the ailing economy. “We’re barely keeping our heads above water,” he said.

Many charities in the county have been struggling to provide food, board and clothing for the poor during the economic downturn of the past three years.

The United Way fell $800,000 short of its $6.6-million goal in the 1991-92 fund-raising year as aerospace plants closed or relocated, taking jobs with them. So United Way’s directors set their goal lower last year and instituted a new campaign theme focusing on money raised in each city.

It turned out to be a success: The county’s largest fund-raising organization exceeded its $5.1-million goal by nearly $200,000, Kessler said. The fund-raising goal this year is $5.35 million, she said.

While many economists believe the recession has bottomed out in Ventura County, the pace of recovery has been slight at best. The unemployment rate was 9.4% in September, with nearly 36,000 people out of work. And real estate experts report that home sales have continued to remain sluggish.

Against that lackluster backdrop, the increase in giving that most philanthropic groups have seen this year is significant, charity leaders said. Among the most generous givers, not surprisingly, are those employees who have felt little effect from the recession.

Symetrics, a Newbury Park aerospace company that manufactures high-precision valves used on the space shuttle, has not experienced layoffs and other cost-cutting moves that other firms have instituted in recent years, Vice President Dale Patty said.

And this year its 107 employees contributed $6,912 to the United Way, up from $4,300 last year, Patty said.

“Our employees feel our company is very stable from an employment standpoint,” he said. “They are not scared about losing their jobs, so they are looser with the purse strings.”

The recession also has not touched employees at California Amplifier in Camarillo, which manufactures microwave amplifiers and components used in satellite dish communications. About 90% of the company’s 415 employees gave to the United Way this year, pushing donations to $11,000 more than last year, said Jackie Sheehan, campaign coordinator.

Rita Mosely, a receiving clerk at California Amplifier, said she contributes every year because she believes it is her duty to help those less fortunate.

“A lot of our employees know people who have used the services of charitable organizations,” Mosely said. “Personally, my cousin has used Easter Seals. It hits home.”

When people see results from their giving, they are likely to continue sending checks year after year, even during hard times, said Brian Bolton, executive director of the Ventura County chapter of the Red Cross.

Membership contributions this year so far have totaled $55,000, up $4,000 from last year, he said. And the Ventura office was flooded with donations following the recent wildfires that ravaged homes in Ventura County and other areas in Southern California.

More than $62,000 has been earmarked for fire victims, he said.

“When we see our neighbors impacted so horribly, we want to step forward and do something,” Bolton said.

Often, when people don’t have spare cash to give, they bring in old clothing, blankets or anything else that could be of value to a struggling family, said Mary Ann Decaen, coordinator of community services at Catholic Charities.

“They will come by with a couple of packages of diapers and will say they know how expensive they can be and please give them to a family in need,” Decaen said.

And at Food Share’s food bank in Oxnard, people drop by this time of year with turkeys, hams, canned yams and boxes of stuffing, said Executive Director Jewel Pedi. The food bank distributed $7 million worth of food last year, and that figure is expected to rise this year, she said.

Instead of donating goods, about 1,000 volunteers each year give their time stocking the warehouse and delivering shipments of food, Pedi said. One of them is David Floyd, 37, of Oxnard.

Floyd, who recently got a job as a painter after two years of unemployment, said he volunteers at Food Share because the organization provided him with meals when he was out of work.

“I found a love and acceptance here that I want to return now that I am in a better position,” he said.

Pauline Saterbo, who has run the Manna Conejo Valley Food Bank for 23 years, said she is always amazed by the community’s generosity, even during hard times. Saterbo said that when donations start to fall off, she just puts out the word that certain items are needed.

“The minute we let people know what we need, they come right over with it,” she said.

One volunteer spends her spare time making small quilts for babies, Saterbo said.

“A lot of mothers come in and their babies’ feet are cold. They’re purple,” Saterbo said. “And we wrap them up in those quilts and get them all toasty.”