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WALNUT CREEK (MCT) — Bright signs in Spanish offer to send cus- tomers' money back home to Mexico, Central Amer- ica and elsewhere at near- ly every other business on Oakland's International Boulevard, but the econo- my has taken its toll. Layoffs at the store- front office of OrderEx- press brought the staff down from four to two in the past year, said Maria Garibay, a cashier who has worked there for 10 years. The remittance ser- vices make money on their fees — usually $10 for each transaction under $1,000. Sometimes, those who do come have little to spare, but will send it any- way, even if the remit- tance amounts to just $30 or $50, cashiers said. Carlos Gomez, 30, was one of the few people who arrived with cash at Garib- ay's office Feb. 3. He sent a few hundred dollars to his mother in Pajacuaran, a small town in the Michoacan state of Mexi- co. In better times, Gomez had steady work removing asbestos and would send $200 a month to his fami- ly. The cash lifeline helped pay medical bills and other necessities, but both Gomez and his brother, who also lives in Oakland, have been out of work. Gomez said that the last time he sent money was more than two months ago. America's depleted economy has hit Mexican immigrants' pocketbooks hard, sharply decreasing the cash wired south of the border. Mexican workers sent $19.6 billion back to their native country in the first 11 months of last year, down 16 percent from the same period in 2008, according to recent bank reports. In November, Mexico received $1.5 bil- lion in remittances, down 14.4 percent from the pre- vious year. November marked the lowest remit- tance revenue since Feb- ruary 2005, according to Juan Luis Ordaz Diaz, senior economist for BBVA Bancomer in Mex- ico City. "Remittances are the second most important source of foreign currency in Mexico, after oil rev- enues," Diaz said in an e- mail. They represent close to 3 percent of Mexico's gross domestic product. The drop in remit- tances is due to the eco- nomic situation faced by Mexican immigrants, a group in which unemploy- ment has doubled since the recession hit, he said. On a recent afternoon, two red phones sat silent on the front counter of Las Montanas market in Concord, Calif. Operated by Orlandi Valuta, a sub- sidiary of Western Union, the phones provide a quick way to wire money to Mexico or other Latin American countries. Money transfers have dropped about 20 to 30 percent this year, said market general manager Norma Muhlenbruch. "A couple years ago, it was a really good busi- ness to have," she said as she sold a customer a pre- paid phone card, another popular item, which has seen a 10 percent drop in sales. One customer, Misael, picked up one of the phones and told the opera- tor he wanted to wire $450 to his 28-year-old wife in Puebla, Mexico. It was quite the bounty. Lately, the 28-year-old Concord restaurant worker, who only provided his first name due to immigration concerns, says he can only afford sending $100 to $150 once a month. It is about half as much as he sent a year ago. Donations to Mexican hometown associations have stopped, said Emigdio Robles. The Liv- ermore, Calif., resident once coordinated winter fundraisers, sending much-needed blankets and warm clothes south to his native Mexican state of Zacatecas, where win- ter temperatures often drop below freezing. Not anymore. "It's cold there right now," said Robles, presi- dent and secretary of pro- jects for United Zacatecan Community Development Corporation, a group of 17 hometown associations stretching from Fresno to the Oregon border. "There are a lot of people who need our help." Hometown associa- tions became powerful during the boom times, sending millions of dol- lars back to their native pueblos. The organiza- tions pool immigrant donations and, with Mexi- can government matching funds, pay for village and town infrastructure improvements. "This year we've not been able to fund one pro- ject," Robles said. In the past, his organization would send as much as $1 million in project dona- tions to Zacatecas, and other groups across the country would raise about $20 million annually for the North Central state. Last year, the organization tallied $150,000 nation- wide, Robles said. "They've lost income. They've lost jobs. Some have lost their business- es," Robles said. 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