In this recession, many Americans are struggling to make ends meet, but people in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, have a unique safety net of sorts: Sal Dimiceli.

Raised in poverty, Sal vowed when he was 12 years old that he'd always help people in need, and he's spent nearly all of his adult life making good on that promise.

Through his local newspaper column, Sal invites people who've fallen on hard times to write him letters, describing their situation. Once he's verified that the need is real, he'll assist with immediate needs – food, rent, utilities – and try to improve their long-term situation with financial management skills.

For decades, his nonprofit, The Time Is Now To Help, has provided basic needs – and often much more – to more than 500 people a year.

WATCH the CNN Heroes video below, or READ the story here.