AskMeCha: Friend needs job →[More:]A family friend is desperate. He owns a house, but may lose it. He has cared for his developmentally disabled niece for years, and her benefits have helped them survive, but his savings are gone and his car is dying quickly. Last week he mailed me to meet for lunch, then backed out saying he was broke. He was able to get a job driving a bread truck but that's only part time.

He was a local talk radio host, handling lighter human-interest fare, and well-liked -- but for various reasons he hated radio and abruptly quit a few years ago. He probably thought he'd find something before now, but then the recession hit, and it's gotten thin for him.

He's trying to get commercial and voice work and has had a few small paying acting gigs (many years in community theater). Being in a smaller city (Milwaukee is an hour away) beset by unemployment since the closure of an auto plant, I just don't know what to suggest at this point.

The only thing I can come up with is somehow monetizing his collection of old movies (on film) and associated memorabilia. I believe he's been selling some prized items already. But he's not a computer guy at all so words like "blog" and "podcast" go right over his head.