Unemployment is rising locally, according to numbers released from the Virginia Employment Commission.

Waynesboro has a rapidly rising unemployment rate, hitting 9.2 percent in January. That's a 1.6 percent increase in just one month.

Harrisonburg and Rockingham County saw rising unemployment as well. In the city, the unemployment rate hit 7.6 percent in January. In the county, the unemployment rate climbed to 6.6 percent.

However, there may be hope for some out-of-work people in the Valley.

A regional job fair in Rockingham County drew about 1,000 people Thursday. It was organized by the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Chamber of Commerce.

Nicole Wright and Bradley Strawderman attended the fair. They have been looking for work since they lost their jobs in December.

When asked how he would describe his hunt for a new job, Wright replies, "Awful. I've put in 30 applications and gotten nothing. No callbacks, nothing."

"Nobody's even responded at all. So, it's really bad right now," says Strawderman.

A line formed early at the Best Buy table.

The electronics chain is opening a store in Harrisonburg in June. Store managers say they're trying to fill 80 to 90 jobs, 30 of which will be full-time positions.

That table was one of Wright's and Strawderman's first stops.

Around the room they went, talking to the job fair's roughly 20 vendors, which fair organizers say is down from a typical year.

"I just want somebody to give me a chance," says Wright.

Kanika Shipe works for Adecco, which connects employees to businesses. She says lately there are more openings for clerical jobs and in industrial work.

"Last year, I think we struggled toward the end of the year, but after January 1, it has really picked up," says Shipe.

Wright and Strawderman went table to table in search of those new jobs, knowing there are hundreds of people behind them doing the same thing.

"You're waiting for the next shoe to drop for bills because you know you can't pay them. And, business is business. Your landlord's not out there for charity," says Strawderman.

Chamber organizers say they're considering having another fair this year due to interest from the community.