In the darkest hours of recession in Elkhart, optimists clung to this thread of hope: That in the past, this RV manufacturing economy always led the way into a downturn, but it also led the way out.
The mood at the annual Biz-ness Expo this week, as reported by The Elkhart Truth on Friday suggests that old adage just may be proving true once again.

The number of companies taking part in the the Chamber of Commerce event at the Recreational Vehicle/Manufactured Housing Hall of Fame was up 18 percent from a year ago.
And most of those interviewed--from purveyors of trout to insurance sales representatives--saw business looking up as 2010 approaches. It may not be the boom of 2007, but certainly, they said, it looks better than 2008 and early 2009, when so many businesses shut down that unemployment soared to nearly 20 percent from around 4 percent.
Helping fuel a modest rebound for this economy is an increase in demand for RVs. Manufacturer Jayco is hiring back 200 workers as it boosts production, The Elkhart Truth also reported this week.
Now the number of jobless is drifting down, hovering around 15 percent, and business is picking up for those businesses that survived.
As business one interviewee put it: "A lot of companies are starting to crawl out from under the desk."