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Relief Efforts Under Way in Wake of Calif. Wildfires

Free Laundry Day, relief fund for those impacted

HAYWARD, Calif. — Three Northern California Laundromats have teamed with laundry equipment manufacturer Dexter Laundry and distributor Western State Design to raise funds and sponsor a Free Laundry Day next week for residents affected by the recent wildfires.

The wine country wildfires have destroyed at least 8,400 homes and other buildings, according to the Los Angeles Times. As of Oct. 23, the death toll stood at 42. About 100,000 people have been displaced by the fires.

Even for area residents whose homes or property weren’t destroyed, the smell of smoke permeates clothing, bedding and other possessions. People in the wildfire-affected areas are in dire need of clean laundry.

And so it is that three Laundromats will host a Free Laundry Day from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Pacific on Monday. The participating stores are:

  • Wash World, 1418 Mendocino Ave., Santa Rosa, Calif., owned by Karin and Brad Seder, 707-539-5282
  • Launderland, 201 W. Napa Rd. #25, Sonoma, Calif., owned by Diane Natenstedt, 707-394-5805
  • Mi Familia Lavanderia, 2908 1st St., Napa, Calif., owned by Eric Obranovich, 707-226-3954

In addition to sponsoring the Free Laundry Day, Western State Design and Dexter have set up a matching relief fund for others to donate money to aid the fire victims. Together, the two companies will match the first $6,000 in tax-deductible donations to the fund, administered by the Coin Laundry Association’s LaundryCares Foundation.

To donate to help the California fire victims, visit www.laundrycares.org/sonoma17.

coffey park subdivision of santa rosa

The Coffey Park subdivision of Santa Rosa, Calif., was one of the neighborhoods hardest hit by the recent wildfires, with at least 1,300 homes destroyed and several deaths. (© iStockphoto.com/Anne Belden)

Have a question or comment? E-mail our editor Bruce Beggs at [email protected].