photo by Karen Laslo
Earl Lewis, who runs on-site operations at the shower-and-laundry unit Haven of Hope on Wheels, discussed his work in a recent November interview.
“135?” someone calls out from in front of the blue trailer.
“Here,” says a man in a green jacket and blue jeans, who then takes charge of his freshly-packed laundry bag labelled “135.”
The man puts the bag in his arm and walks toward the shopping cart filled with his other belongings.
Suddenly, he lowers his head and leans toward the plastic bag, smelling his freshly washed and dried clothes as if he was smelling the fragrance of flowers. Then, he smiles, illuminated by warm sunlight.
He had taken a hot shower and received his laundered clothes at the truck-trailer “Haven of Hope on Wheels.” The Haven is a mobile hygiene unit that offers shower and laundry services to vulnerable individuals in need, most of whom are homeless.