Needy ask online for clothes, rent, gifts

With joblessness in the state at a 25-year high and the needy standing in line for aid, some are making direct pleas for help online instead.

In recent weeks, dozens of people have posted requests for help on the Raleigh edition of Craigslist, the Web site that offers free classified ads. As Christmas approaches, many posts have taken a desperate tone, asking for used children's clothing, shoes or toys, holiday decorations, even food and rent money.

Thousands of nonprofit agencies across the state are dedicated to easing the suffering of the poor, but Craigslist is a place where people can ask directly for immediate help and connect with sympathetic individuals, not bureaucracies. Especially during the holidays, it's a high-tech tug on the heartstrings.

"I need some help really badly. My family and I have hit some really hard times and are unable to pay our rent for this month," read a post Dec. 5 from Zebulon with the subject line, WE NEED A MIRACLE. "The amount is 350.00. I don't know what we are going to do. We honestly just do not have the money. This is not a scam, I am being as real as I possibly can be. We need help. Can someone help us please!!"

Four days earlier, a woman wrote: "My husband and I are looking for children's items for a newborn boy and a 7-year-old girl. We are really having a hard time right now, though I know everyone is. ...

"We moved to Raleigh and have had a string of bad luck and are trying to put something together for Christmas."

'It's hard to keep up'

Vicki Shearin of Louisburg never thought of asking for help from anybody until this year. Her husband, Ricky, is disabled by end-stage emphysema, and her job as a shift supervisor at a local drug store is barely enough to pay the bills and medical expenses. As he undergoes tests to see if he is a candidate for a lung transplant, she tries to make sure that he's comfortable and that their three sons still living at home have what they need.

Looking through Craigslist, she sometimes noticed people offering goods for free if someone would pick them up. She went a step further and put up a note in the "for sale" category, under "wanted," asking if anyone had jeans or shirts in her boys' sizes he or she couldn't use anymore.

"I'm not even asking for Christmas help," Shearin said. "I was just basically trying to find some clothes for the kids. They go from a 10 to a 14 overnight, and it's hard to keep up."

Shearin used her home computer. Others post from public computers at libraries or use those of friends.

Craigslist, which is administered by a staff of about 25 people in California, did not respond to requests for interviews about needy persons' use of the site to solicit help. But other Craigslist users often "flag" them and remove them. Sometimes, the user who objected will add a scolding or cautionary note.

On Dec. 16, one asked why those who need help don't turn to family instead of strangers. On Dec. 19, another suggested that some of those asking for donations were collecting goods to re-sell later.

On Monday, a user at sale-966789084@craigslist.org wrote: "I recently responded to a post for used FREE tv. The tv we offered was a 20 inch color tv with remote less than 2 yrs old. The POSTER of the add declined the tv saying she did NEED a free tv but wanted it to be 32 inches or larger.... There is a huge difference between NEED and WANT."

R.J. Moshay, spokesman for Triangle United Way Inc., said he didn't know people were using Craigslist to appeal for aid.

"I always thought of Craigslist as, 'I need a roommate, I want a car,' " he said.