One of the most dreaded chores – laundry – is now a little less daunting thanks to First United Methodist Church of Little Rock. Their Lil Rock’n’Roll Wash, a mobile laundry facility, helps those who don’t have a home or access to laundry facilities get clean clothes.
“Every Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, we host a Community Café where our unsheltered neighbors can relax, grab a snack and something to drink, charge their phone, use our WiFi, or just take a nap,” said Rev. Haley Jones, pastor of community engagement at First United Methodist Church of Little Rock. “One of the most often asked questions was, ‘Do you have a place I can do my laundry?’ In the beginning, I would refer them to Jericho Way or the Salvation Army. I wondered in what way as a congregation could we meet this need.”
Jones approached the church’s building services director, Jerry Carpenter, about a mobile laundry online. Carpenter had outfitted vans for camping, and the idea of the mobile unit intrigued him. They put together a plan that included using a van the church already owned and modifying it with two stackable washer-dryer units. They presented the proposal to the church’s board of trustees, which approved the idea.
“Right now, our goal is to launch in September,” Jones said. “We’ll begin with our Community Café and offer the laundry the same days it is open. It’s a full-service laundry so everything will be available at no charge to our unsheltered neighbors – detergent, water, energy. Each person will receive a laundry basket to put their clothes in, and a volunteer will work with them to get on the van and start washing. If our math is right, we’ll be able to do six to eight loads of laundry during the two hours the café is open.”
Jones said they eventually plan to travel to help unsheltered citizens throughout the city. “We want to work with Canvas Community and Highland Valley United Methodist Church,” she said. “We want to get the system down here, so we know it runs smoothly.”
Creating a sense of community is just as important as providing a resource for people who need assistance. Jones said the Community Café provides a place for those using the laundry to hang out, relax and connect with other people in their community. This sense of connection is something she wants to replicate with the mobile laundry when it begins traveling.
“We’re considering setting up tables and providing coffee when we take the unit to other areas, but until then, we play classic rock’n’roll in the unit to make doing laundry as fun as it can be,” Jones said. “This all came about because we listened to the needs of the people in our neighborhood. We have a relationship with them and maintain a consistent presence. This project is not something we just decided to do; it’s a response to the needs of the people around us.”
To contribute to or learn more about the Lil Rock’n’Roll mobile laundry unit, contact Rev. Jones at HJones@FUMCLR.org or 501-372-2256 ext. 219.