Florida couple waving away recession woes

JACKSONVILLE, Fla., March 11 (UPI) -- Nancy Brown and her husband, Joe, say waving at passers-by in Jacksonville, Fla., has proved rewarding even during the ongoing U.S. recession.

Brown said while she and her husband's small business is struggling amid the economic downturn, they still continue their more than 20-year-long waving hobby in the Jacksonville neighborhood of Riverside, the Jacksonville (Fla.) Times-Union said Wednesday.

"We always get the 'Thank you for waving and making my day better,'" Brown said. "At Christmas time, we get all sorts of gifts, from people we don't even know."

Joe Brown, who runs an exterminating business with his wife, said occasionally guests even take part in the heart-warming activities.

"Some nights it's just the two of us," Joe Brown said. "Other nights we have to fetch more chairs."

Former Riverside Avondale Preservation chairman Jerry Spinks applauded the couple's waving efforts.

"The neighborhood is simply richer for people like that who make you feel good about your day," Spinks told the Times-Union