When the storm known as the derecho hit in June, All in One Laundry Center, 801 South Grand, went into action, doing 14,000 loads of laundry over three days. Over 700 families were helped. Those without electricity – some for as long as two weeks, patients of Springfield Clinic, people in need – all received free laundry service.
The work continues through a newly created 501(c)3, Clean Slate Advocates, led by Robert Frazier. Frazier says, “We had been offering free laundry to those in need; now we can do it through a nonprofit. The program is called Soap to Hope – helping people without the money or resources, to get clean clothes.”
Frazier explains: “People need clean clothes as well as linens, blankets, etc. Schoolkids who don’t have clean clothes are embarrassed and don’t do well. For some people, having clean items is a luxury. We want to help all who are in need.” The nonprofit’s mission states clean clothes impact “one’s dignity, confidence and sense of belonging.”
Frazier and his team do not ask questions about anyone’s circumstances. Stories are uplifting. A lady arrived with a van full of clothes. A cart that holds 20 loads wasn’t enough. Frazier says, “We kept pulling out weeks, maybe months, of dirty clothes from her van. It took three carts. We do not ask for any explanation. After all the laundry was done, the lady looked at me and said, ‘I couldn’t have done this without you.'”
Others, some anonymously, share their stories on Cleanslateadvocates Facebook page. A woman, out of work with three children and a broken washer calls the service a “blessing.” Another says she had no funds but the program was a “great help to my children and me.” A single mom of six children, living in a hotel for 565 days, says, “Thank you for helping and not making us feel ashamed.” Another writes of the derecho “destroying our home” and how the service was such a help.
Frazier adds, “The thanks we get is what makes this so worthwhile.”
With over 50 washers and dryers, with capacities ranging from two loads to 25, the laundromat can handle 5,000 loads a day. No longer does someone have to feed the machines with money; the staff can activate machines through a computer program. The clients needing the Soap to Hope service are given soap and dryer sheets, and they do their own laundry.
Asked whether some take unfair advantage of the free service, Frazier says there have probably been a few. “But,” he says, “we can’t judge. One man came in with his girlfriend and told her she could get free laundry. The lady said she didn’t need help at the time but knew where she could come if things changed. That is what we want. We want our machines used, not sitting idle. If this can help someone in need, then that’s what we are here to do.”
Because the laundry has been in business since 2019, Frazier always knew of the needs of so many. “People just don’t realize,” he says. “Maybe there is a family of five; the parents have jobs and may make a livable wage, but with costs rising for rent, food and utilities, they still may not have enough money to do laundry on a regular basis. So, this is a perfect resource for them.”
The laundromat has a welcoming environment with TVs and a snack/coffee area.
As a new leader of a nonprofit, Frazier has reached out to others in similar positions. He identifies an overarching need. “The biggest problem is that there isn’t one source that gives information about help, whether that is getting IT, TV, laundry or other services.”
Many people go to a laundromat, and Frazier says it’s not fair to judge that all are poor. Some have their own machines at home, but they can come in and do many loads at once or wash items too bulky for a home machine.
The laundromat’s commercial side, with six trucks and one of the largest facilities between here and St. Louis, provides laundry service to nursing homes, gyms, homeless shelters, etc. The commercial side of the business, regular paying clients and donations help fund Soap to Hope.
Frazier knows about being in need. “I am not native to Springfield. When I was younger, I worked daily but had to live under a bridge. I know what it feels like to have little. Now, I can give to others. Maybe if we all showed more compassion for each other, we’d have a better world.”
Frazier and his wife want to help people as part of their Christian faith. Frazier sums up, “We want anyone in Springfield to know that, whatever the situation, they can get their laundry done. We feel better knowing we are helping; our Soap to Hope clients feel better wearing clean clothes.”
Cinda Ackerman Klickna is a frequent contributor to Illinois Times.
This article appears in Funeral home failures.
When I was young and didn’t yet have any grasp on the complexities of life, I commented in front of my mother that poor people could at least be clean. She straightened me out by explaining that it isn’t as simple as that, that sometimes a parent might have to choose between buying a loaf of bread or buying a bar of soap. As a first-generation child of Sicilian immigrants, it’s quite possible that her family faced that choice at times in her life or knew others that did. Proper perspective and compassion are everything.
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