TRAVERSE CITY -- Aza Drielts-Davis would work 60 hours a week if she could.
But no one's offering that many hours these days, so she logs about 40 between shifts at Admiral Discount Tobacco and as a receptionist at Advanced Computer Solutions in Traverse City.
She wants to go back to school to earn a bachelor's degree. And she wants to provide for her family -- including her 15-year-old sister, Kayla, of whom she has custody -- without having to work six days a week at two part-time jobs.
But money, of course, doesn't grow on trees. For people like Aza, dollars and cents are dug from the ground, scraped together through struggles and coveted, at least until the next bill.
"We have no savings whatsoever," said Drielts-Davis, 22. "I know people who have college degrees, and I know people who have a GED. Everybody's struggling."
Her story isn't unique. She's not the exception. These days, she's part of a widening group of local people squeezed by a recession that already has taken so much -- jobs and homes, incomes and pensions, confidence and security.
To be sure, adults aren't the only ones affected when the economy sours. Children, teenagers and young adults have to cope with the changes and stresses brought on by a downturn just as their parents and grandparents do.
Some parents use dismal economic reports as tools to teach their children about saving and spending. Others openly discuss their financial health with their sons and daughters -- especially when the children are part breadwinner.
"(It's) not a great time to be young," said Jane Zehnder-Merrell, a senior research associate with the Michigan League for Human Services, a Lansing-based nonprofit advocacy group. "They are developing so rapidly in those early years that any deprivation can be profound."
A struggle in numbers
New three-year Census data released last week provide the most current picture of the region's economic stability. The numbers, averaged between 2005-07, reflect places with at least 20,000 people -- including Grand Traverse, Leelanau and Antrim counties.
In Grand Traverse County, 8.5 percent of residents and 10.3 percent of children younger than 18 lived in poverty in the past year, slightly higher than 6.6 percent of residents and 7 percent of children in Leelanau County.
In Antrim County, 13.4 percent of the population and 19.5 percent of children were considered to live in poverty. Statewide, those figures were 13.7 percent and 18.9 percent, respectively, the data show.
Zehnder-Merrell also is project director for Kids Count in Michigan, an annual report detailing child health and safety. Each of the state's 83 counties is ranked, with No. 1 being the best.
Last year's report shows 13.3 percent of children lived in poverty in Benzie County, using 2004 figures, as did 19.4 percent in Kalkaska County. The counties ranked 18th and 56th, respectively.
And the numbers of families, adults and children seeking food at the Father Fred Foundation, for instance, are up by double-digit percentages compared to 2007.
Part of the problem is the shrinking state safety net, Zehnder-Merrell said. Employee caseloads are growing and funding for important programs is eroding.
"We've taken away all these supports, and now the state is looking at more cuts," she said. "There's no more fat to cut out of the budget. We're cutting into the meat and bone."
In Grand Traverse County alone, Department of Human Services caseworkers each are responsible for about 750 families, a "record high," said Dawn McLaughlin, director of the department's county office.
In the last four years, the number of people seeking assistance has grown by 61 percent, McLaughlin said.
"We had so many people coming in to apply for help that we had to temporarily go to group interviews," she said. "If you've never had to ask for help before, it can be a very difficult thing. It takes a lot of courage, and people are willing to do that, if only for their children."
How parents cope
Lindsey Kimball limits her spending for her three children, and tries to shop resale when possible.
But finding outfits for her 5-year-old daughter has been particularly challenging. The little girl is growing so quickly, she said, that "you have to get clothes every six months."
In the latter part of the year, Kimball, of South Boardman, has watched her cleaning business struggle to gain new clients as the recession worsened. She regularly cleans residences, commercial buildings and construction sites, but said four months have passed without a construction job.
"The clients that I've had are still with me, but I haven't had any new business," she said. "It seems kind of universal."
Parents have turned to area nonprofits and secondhand stores in swelling numbers this year in their efforts to stretch dollars like rubber bands.
During the late summer back-to-school shopping binge, for instance, area Goodwill stores had nearly 10 percent more clothing sell in August than the same month a year ago, retail director Robert Randall said then.
It's more than just clothing, some parents say, adding they would rather sacrifice than have their children go without.
Meredith Smith no longer splurges on leisure activities for herself, partly so she can continue to afford things for sons Jacob, 12, and Tyler, 9.
"We don't do anything special," she said. "It's always about the kids."
She will begin classes in January at Northwestern Michigan College, in hopes of earning a business management degree.
"I was in school when the kids were babies," said Smith, of Traverse City. "It was too hard."
An upside is that children can learn life lessons from a down economy, said Lisa Klein, a mother of three from Traverse City.
She and her husband, a pharmaceutical sales representative, gave Collin, 11, Jeremy, 9, and Lilian, 6, each $50 to buy Christmas presents for their parents and siblings. That came to $12.50 per person.
"It helps them to learn how to be a budgeter," said Klein, a substitute teacher at Grand Traverse Academy. "We just are very frugal in our shopping. It's more necessity now than extra special things."
'People need to come together'
Aza Drielts-Davis tried, once, to build her dream house.
She was approved for a mortgage and was in talks with a local contractor to create a home so energy-efficient that, she hoped, the utility companies would pay her.
Then she accepted a higher-wage job, a move she said was made out of financial necessity but one that eventually cost her the dream: The lender reneged on the deal, citing an inconsistent employment history.
She isn't sure now if she'll ever own a home.
"As long as we have a roof over our head and food in our cupboard, then we're doing good," she said. "I try to stay positive. We work really hard."
In addition to her two jobs, her husband works for a lawn maintenance company and at a Subway restaurant.
Rent for their Traverse City apartment is close to $900 a month, and health insurance is impossible. Roughly $50 to $100 is left after bills are paid each month.
"We have enough to cover what we need," Drielts-Davis said. "If one of us lost even one of our jobs, we'd be hurting."
She earned an associate's degree in business, but now owes about $14,000 in student loans. She pays about $200 each month, but "it never seems like it goes anywhere," Drielts-Davis said. "I almost wish I hadn't gotten it."
She hasn't had much luck finding work using it. Employers seem to want candidates with more education, she said. And she doesn't want to seek a bachelor's degree right now because she is raising Kayla, of whom she has had guardianship for two years.
She receives Social Security payments and funds from Catholic Human Services for her sister.
"She can still have the kid stuff," Drielts-Davis said. "We take cuts on our part. We don't really go out that much. We don't really splurge."
Yet no matter how tight, Drielts-Davis manages to give back. When the family moves, for instance, they donate at least two full trash bags to local charities. She gives money each year.
And from time to time, she opens her apartment doors to friends who need a place to sleep.
"I won't throw anything away if anyone could use it. Never," Drielts-Davis said. "People need to come together and help each other out."
Coming Monday: Seniors' fears grow as economy tumbles.
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