Despite a slumping economy, The Deep Well Project's annual fundraising campaign is inching toward matching the total raised in 2007.
As of Friday, the Empty Well campaign had raised $289,636, said executive director Betsy Doughtie.
The most recent campaign brought in about $300,000, but donations keep trickling in, giving Doughtie hope the campaign can keep pace with the tally from 2007.
"It's just phenomenal," she said. "We are just thrilled that people have been so incredibly generous in these tough economic times."
The nonprofit agency helped about 1,675 low-income families last year, a 13-percent increase from 2007. Deep Well organizers had hoped to raise or exceed last year's fund-raising total to keep pace with increased demand.
Deep Well's services include food, rent assistance, home and septic repairs, water and utility bills, transportation to medical appointments and government offices, back-to-school clothing, furniture and prescription medication.
The fund-raising campaign, which runs from Thanksgiving to Christmas, provides more than half of Deep Well's $600,000 budget.
Donations come in the form of community events, church and business fund-raisers and individual giving.
The campaign kicked off at Hudson's annual Thanksgiving dinner, raising about $7,400.
The holiday lights on Dove Street, which seeks donations, brought in $10,600 -- the most ever.
A motorcycle toy run last month collected $3,768 in addition to hundreds of dollars worth of gifts for children.
Totals do not include the donations of toys, groceries and other goods brought into the Deep Well office.
Its food pantry was almost bare in mid-November, but now canned goods are being stored in boxes because the shelves are full.
"The community is so giving," Doughtie said. "We needed it this year more than ever."
In addition to the Empty Well campaign, Deep Well relies on contributions from local agencies such as the United Way of the Lowcountry, The Bargain Box, the Hilton Head Island Celebrity Golf Tournament, the Heritage Classic Foundation, churches and others.
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