Gordon, the mayor of Huntington, said the uncertainties surrounding efforts to rescue men trapped more than a quarter-mile underground make it tough for her and others to focus on the more mundane activities.

"It's difficult for people to carry on their daily lives," Gordon said Sunday. "I have a business I run with my daughter but I haven't been there for five days. We've put everything on hold."

However, Gordon said people in this small mining town haven't lost hope that the miners will eventually be found and reunited with their families.

The mayor went out with Councilwoman Julie Jones to visit the miners' families Sunday morning. Her primary observation: the families remain optimistic that the drama that has unfolded in the canyon for a week will have a happy ending.

"One of the fathers of the boys said 'Hilary, I am as hopeful today as I was the first day." And you can't get better than that," Gordon said.

Marlayne Gordon - a distant relative of the mayor - said her husband, longtime miner Jesse Gordon, has been home only a few hours since Monday. The rest of the time has been spent trying to rescue the six trapped men.

"They're still pretty optimistic," Marlayne Gordon said, "but I think they have to do that for each other."

It isn't all anguish. Jose Sandoval Sanchez, cousin of miner Manuel Sanchez, said the miner's extended family is catching up with each other and reminiscing about old times while they await word. But he did have a message for the people of Huntington:

"Keep up the thoughts and prayers. Everybody knows this is a slow process," Sanchez said.

That hope is evident as one drives around the city. Banners on the fence at Huntington Elementary School offer support for the families, as well as hope that the miners will soon be rescued. One banner instructs people to "Light up your porch until they come home." One business has a sign that simply asks people to pray for the miners.

"Huntington is holding strong because we are not giving up hope. We pull together," Councilwoman Jones said.

Just the same, Melodye Sinclair said the wait has been rough on the community. "I think everyone is pretty devastated," she said.

As the wife of a miner at the Deer Creek Mine, the miners' plight hits close to home for her. But that experience also gives her some understanding of the problems the rescue crews are facing.

Sinclair believes the mine owners are doing everything possible to get the men out, but the same mountains that serve as Huntington's stunning backdrop also make getting to the men more difficult than a mine rescue in other parts of the country.

Hilary Gordon said the hardest part for people in dealing with ordeal has been the uncertainty. Reports about varying oxygen levels in the mines and the inability of cameras to find any evidence of the miners has created frustration.

Just the same, the mayor says the families and friends are staying strong and pulling together. With offers of help from all over, she said the people of her town will do whatever it takes to aid the miners and their families in this time of need.

"Everyone wants to take a shovel and get up there," Gordon said.

Looking ahead, a benefit has been scheduled for Friday at 7 p.m. in Huntington's Main Street Park, with proceeds from the event going to the miners' families.

Mayor Gordon said the city has set up two bank accounts for people wanting to donate money. Until Saturday, the city was providing meals for the miners' families at the school, a duty the American Red Cross has since taken over. But Gordon said she still has an obligation to provide moral support for the families.

"When times are difficult - and times like this are extremely difficult - there is a support each person gives," Gordon said. "We talk about a cup being filled up and we give from our cup to them."

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* NATE CARLISLE contributed to this story.

HUNTINGTON - More than anything, Sunday provided people here with a chance to seek comfort and solace in their faith.

Melodye Sinclair, who helps lead services at the Desert Edge Christian Chapel, said her church offered a special prayer for the miners and their families. She estimated 80 people attended the meeting, almost double from the size of the congregation two weeks ago.

"There were people here today that I haven't seen in a long time," Sinclair said.

The family of trapped miner Kerry Allred attends Castle Dale Baptist Church. The pastor there, Sam Wilbanks, said the Allred family was in church Sunday to join in the congregation's prayers for the six men.

"We're still thinking, praying they're still alive and God will do a miracle," he said.

Steven Gordon, the bishop of the LDS First Ward in Huntington, said attendance Sunday was a little lower than normal because some families were out of town, but the ward included the miners in every prayer.

The bells of the Mission San Rafael rang as usual Sunday morning as about 100 people gathered for Mass. With little information available at the morning's briefing, Father Donald Hope asked the congregation to continue their prayers for strength.

The mood was somber, with a sense of humility and defeat as the family and friends of the trapped miners sang and prayed.

"They are devastated. They are so devastated," Filomena Lee, a mission member said. "You can look at them and see, feel that they want to reach out and think they're alive. But every day that passes, it gets worse."

Lee, a retired Wilberg mine worker, said she knows what it is like to live through a mine tragedy, referring to the 1984 fire in which 27 miners lost their lives.

"This is the strongest community. No matter who, what or where. We will be a family," Lee said. "No matter what, we'll stick together through the bad and good."

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* NATE CARLISLE, DONALD W. MEYERS and ROXANA ORELLANA contributed to this story.