Ken McConnell knows how difficult it is for some people to ask for help in bad times. So he and a nonprofit group are taking the asking out of the equation.
McConnell and Free Laundry Friends are providing free laundry services and gift cards to those in need in the Mountain View and San Jose areas, as well as to employees at local hospitals.
McConnell said he was approached by the group to participate since he has an on-site attendant at one of his four laundromats, El Camino Laundromat in Mountain View. The attendant knows their customers well, and has a good idea which people are struggling to get by.
“The group was concerned if they just gave out free money to do laundry, that it wouldn’t get to the right people,” McConnell said. “It would be kind of like the large corporations taking up all of the small business loans.”
Not surprisingly, those being helped have been grateful. “A few have said to us, ‘This was my grocery money and you’ve given it back,’” McConnell said. “You hear that and you tear up; you can’t believe that people are getting hit that hard, with no job, no source of income, and that they have to pick and choose between eating or wearing clean clothes.”
McConnell said they also work with customers, such as the elderly, hospital workers or immunocompromised, allowing them to drop off their laundry. “They leave it with our attendant, and we’ll wash, dry, fold and bag it so they can just come back later and pick it up,” he said. That extra service is particularly appreciated by those who are at higher risk of getting COVID-19, or who have limited time to do their own laundry.
In addition, Free Laundry Friends distributes laundry gift cards to hospital employees, and with some laundries open 24 hours, the workers can do their laundry for free any time day or night. At unattended laundries, the group just preloads laundry machines with funds so people who come in get the first round of washing and drying done for free. The group is able to fund those needs thanks to a GoFundMe page, which has raised nearly $25,000 since March 28.
McConnell and the group started offering free laundry in early April. “And we’ll keep this going until the crisis is over,” he said. “With everything out there in the news being so negative, this is a positive story. You may walk into (a laundromat) in the worst mood, yet when you walk out, you feel like you have the winning Lotto ticket. Having clean clothes is a huge deal for a lot of people, especially if it means they can then afford to buy food.”
To get to the population they are trying to serve, McConnell said they reach out to local high schools, churches and day worker centers, which help to spread the word about the free laundry services. With the California Department of Public Health recommending people wear a cloth face mask if they leave home, McConnell is paying people to sew cloth masks, which are given out for free at his laundromats.
“We’ve required everyone in the laundromat to wear a mask before, so we partnered with the day worker center and hired a few people to make us masks,” he said. “Then when people come in and don’t have a mask or can’t find one or the mark-up is high, they can take one.” In fact, they can take as many masks as their family needs, McConnell said.
“We are able to put three or four people to work making masks, while also helping people save a few bucks so they can purchase other important things,” he said. In other words, it’s a win-win situation.
McConnell is thankful for Free Laundry Friends since it not only helps people to get their laundry done for free, but it also helps small business laundromats. “It is allowing small businesses like myself to pay our rent and utility bills. It’s a good thing all around.”
