The Island housing crisis has company this year. Coupled with a global financial crisis, year-round residents are more in need than ever of affordable housing options. The alternative? Lose Island-dwelling families that first planted roots here generations ago. Lose the unique sense of community sprung from the home-grown residents who populate the off-season Island. Lose the people who make this resort destination a home.

These are losses that the Island Affordable Housing Fund is not willing to accept. This weekend, they will hold the third annual Housing on the Tube, a telethon fundraiser. “As we’ve educated people on the housing fund . . . we’ve always tried to raise the bar with unique fundraisers,” said executive director Patrick Manning. “We’ve started to grow in the last couple of years big time. To deal with the housing crisis as a whole, [we] came up with an idea to take it to the next level with an event, but also to be inclusive, so somebody who is giving $100 is just as important as someone who is giving $100,000. We thought of the telethon format, and that’s where Housing on the Tube started.”

It’s no secret that affordable housing is difficult to come by on the Vineyard. Skyrocketing real estate values over the last decade have widened the gap.

The affordable housing fund was founded in 1998 to address the disparity between Vineyard real estate prices and income levels for year-round residents. The median income on the Island is among the lowest in the state, making it virtually impossible for the working class people to meet rental prices or finance a mortgage. The fund works in conjunction with the Island Housing Trust and the Dukes County Regional Housing Authority to subsidize projects to create year-round affordable housing, and relies heavily on campaigns and fundraisers for financial support.

The telethon is a three-day fundraiser aired live on Plum TV beginning at 9 a.m. today. It continues through Sunday “We take breaks during the middle of the day because we figure everyone is out there enjoying the sun and they are probably not watching Plum [TV],” said Mr. Manning. A special music festival and party called Rock the Rock will be held Saturday starting at 6 p.m. at the Field Club, a private club that opened this year in Katama. Performers will include Kim Carnes. The event is catered by Truly Scrumptious, and will feature an open bar, extensive buffet and raw bar.

In recent years the telethon has been an enormous success. In its first year in 2007, the event raised over $500,000. Last year it broke $1 million. “That was the most money ever raised for a single event in Island history, so we were really proud of that,” said Mr. Manning.

This year, the stakes are higher. The need is greater, while the recession has put a damper on fund-raising. As a result, the goal for this year’s event is $650,000.

“Right now, [even] with everything that is happening with the economy, all our old sponsors are back in and ticket sales are going through the roof,” Mr. Manning said. “We’ve never had a better time with ticket sales. I don’t know if it means that people more than ever feel that it’s important to give and . . . to stand up for this organization. So we’re crossing our fingers.”

The telethon will be filmed at the Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School; donors and volunteers are encouraged to show up to support the effort.

Norman Rankow, owner of telethon sponsor Colonial Reproductions Inc., is a longtime supporter of the fund. This year, he donated a 31-foot fishing boat to be sold for the cause.

According to Mr. Manning, every dollar or item donated is equally appreciated.

“[Last year] there was a large donor that came in right at the last minute for $350,000. He was moved by how many people that really couldn’t afford it were giving $100 or $200. So again, little donations can turn into something really big for us,” he said.

To make a donation or purchase tickets for Rock the Rock, visit islandaffordable.org or call 508-696-0943.