NILES - Beverly Diruba will go out of her way to find products that are made in America.
Recently, when shopping for a rocking chair, the Hermitage, Pa., resident was about to give up the idea of buying one when she walked into a Hermitage shop and found the perfect chair.
"When I turned it over and discovered it was made in North Carolina, I was so thrilled," she said.
Buying American-made products is so important to Diruba because she knows so many people in her community that cannot find jobs.
"It is supporting our people," Diruba said. "What people are lacking right now is work opportunities. I want to do my part to help."
Although her heart is in buying American-made products, Diruba admits that too often she ends up settling on whatever she finds.
"It is hard to find American-made products," she said. "I wish more stores had sections where American-made products are kept. It'll make it easier."
The Alliance for American Manufacturing's Scott Paul tried and failed to find cribs that were made in the United States when his wife was having twins.
"We knew that a lot of cribs from China were being recalled, so we were determined to find an American-made one," Paul said. "We went to all of the big box stores and shopped online. The only American-made cribs we found were made by Amish craftsmen, but it would have taken us six months to get one. We did not have that amount of time."
The couple finally found a crib in Canada.
The Alliance for American Manufacturing is a Washington, D.C.-based organization that promotes American manufacturing.
"The point is, even if you want to buy American, it is difficult to do that now," he said. "Our manufacturing based has been hollowed out."
Paul said free trade is supposed to create more choices for people, but, in many cases, it has not because companies have moved out of the country.
"You don't have choice anymore," he continued.
When shopping for large items, Paul said people have to be careful with the American-made labels.
"Something like a car may have a large percentage of its parts made in a foreign country, but is assembled here in America," he said.
Not everyone worries about buying American.
"I buy what I like," Jamie Nicholas of Cortland said. "I don't consciously think about where something is made."
Colleen Krafcik of Warren says she concentrates on an item's quality.
"I don't think about where it is made," Krafcik said. "The important thing is how well it is made."
