JOIN THE DISCUSSION: Impact of Recession on KC-Area Economy Tell us how the recession has affected you, your business, or a non-profit group you support. Does the current economy have you cutting back to basics or just cutting back on discretionary spending? Have you made changes to make ends meet?

An on-going series about how the economy is affecting people in Kansas City Vlad Rangotchev Vlad Rangotchev didn't expect to fall in to his current career path. He was just breaking into the graphic design field, when a car accident and the loss of his job set him on a different course. Peter Barrett Pete Barrett's a casualty of the consolidating media market. A long - time marketing manager for a local television station, he was laid off 8 years ago. Phillip Morgan Phillip Morgan was recently laid off from his sales job at a start-up company that after two years decided to close it's doors this past December. Brent Voepel When Brent Voepel had trouble finding a new job in Kansas City's advertising industry, he went back to his college gig of selling kettle corn and funnel cakes. Wilmer McBride Since retiring, Wilmer McBride is having trouble making the mortgage payments on his southeast Kansas City home. Sherry Leedy Sherry Leedy, director of Sherry Leedy Contemporary Art Gallery, says she's noticed a decline in the art market, and her gallery had its first ever art sale.