Oregon Family Gets Creative To Save On Gas, Groceries

The rising price of gas and goods has the Klarich family turning to some good old-fashioned elbow grease to save money.

David Klarich’s car needed major repairs this month, so he’s turning to books and the internet for instruction.

“Just from other repairs I’ve had done I would have guessed that it probably would have (cost) $500-$800, because they’d look at (my car) and see all the other stuff that is wrong and have to fix it. That’s not an option at the moment,” said David Klarich.

David?s saving money on his car repairs, but that doesn’t mean the gas to fill it, or the other family cars, are any cheaper.

Lauralyn Klarich said instead of filling up the tank, the family is opting for more money-saving measures.

“We usually only get $10-$20 at a time, where before we would go (to the pump) and fill it (all the way) up,” said Lauralyn Klarich. “Now, I spent $20 and I only got five gallons.”

The Klariches aren’t sure who’s to blame for the problem.

“I really don’t know who is responsible,” said Lauralyn. “I almost think we need to spend more time looking for other fuels besides gas.”

The family said gas is probably driving up the cost of their groceries too, which is why Jim Klarich is building a fence to protect half-a-yard full of food the Klariches plan to grow themselves.

“There’s a lot of stuff we can grow here,” said Jim. “The lettuce we use every day, carrots, green peppers, tomatoes. Just stuff that you normally go to the grocery store and buy and it isn’t the cheapest stuff in the store.”

The growing concerns also have the Klarich family listening closely to politicians. The Klarich request: Don’t paint with a broad brush.

“Don’t tell me you’re gonna fix it, show me a plan,” said Jim. “Not just, ‘If I get elected I’m going to fix it,’ show me exactly how you’re gonna fix it and then you might get my vote.”

For more on this project and the families participating, go to this website.

Editor’s Note: To show the realities of day-to-day life in the state while studying the proposed policies and solutions suggested by statewide political candidates, WISC-TV, in conjunction with other media partners, has begun a new series as part of the “We the People Wisconsin 2012 Economy Project.”Every month from now until the fall elections, the project will present stories from across the state of families who describe how they are coping with the challenging economy.