Loads Of Hope

Ken is on vacation this week and by default, I'm taking a little bit of time off too. We already live in Florida...a place so many people around the world would love to spend a week to two. I plan on being quite active this week so you can look forward to photos later in the week and probably next week too.



Today's post isn't about me or my life and for that I'm quite grateful. I've never been a benefit of the topic of this post and quite frankly I hope I never need what they are offering. But its important and I've been asked to share it and I'm doing this not out of obligation but because its something that touched my heart when I first saw it back in 2005. 2004 was a very active hurricane season for us in Florida. We evacuated for Charlie who turned earlier than predicted and missed us, we stayed for Frances and Jeanne. We lost power for 5 or 6 days and I can still remember how difficult it was to accomplish day to day activities without electricity. In 2005 I watched Hurricane Katrina head to the Gulf Coast and knew what fear these people faced. Until you've had to look around your home and think "what will fit in the car?" "what do I want to save?" its hard to imagine. Some didn't evacuate and I understand that to some extent too.


The spirit of giving in the wake of a disaster always touches my heart. Tide Loads of Hope was no exception.



If you can, please visit their site and buy a t-shirt to support the cause and then hope you never need their service.



From the Tide Loads of Hope Website:



Tide Loads of Hope helps in the aftermath of a natural disaster by providing clean clothes and a sense of comfort to families in need. Partnering with Feeding America, we travel to disaster affected neighborhoods with the Tide Loads of Hope truck or vans, our free mobile laundry service.

Tide Loads of Hope truck:

• 32 high-efficiency washers and dryers stationed on the truck
• Can do 300 wash and dry cycles a day -equal to one year's worth of laundry for a single family
• Will wash about 9,000 loads of laundry over a four-week period
• Leveraged during massive disasters where electricity is unavailable in the region Tide 

 
Loads of Hope vans:
In partnership with a local laundromat, the Tide Loads of Hope vans provide free laundry service at the same load rate as the trucks
Leveraged during disasters where neighboring communities still have a source of electricity
To date, Tide Loads of Hope has washed more than 35,000 loads of laundry for over 20,000 families. Most importantly, the Tide Loads of Hope program means we're equipped to take action whenever and wherever there is a need in our country.

Tide Loads of Hope Vintage Tees:

Tide Loads of Hope can also be supported through the purchase of a Tide Vintage Tee. All profits go to support families affected by disaster.

Where it all started

In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, the need for clean clothing became critical, and Tide found a way to help. So in November 2005, the Tide Loads of Hope truck headed to Camp Hope in the Metairie, LA area and cleaned over 10,000 loads of laundry. The spirit of this first venture informs and inspires everything Tide Loads of Hope program does.