Free laundry service begins for families in Bridgeport

For families who don’t have a washer and dryer in their home, doing a load of laundry at a laundromat can add up.

Now, an organization in Bridgeport is helping them save some money.

“I bleed Bridgeport, Connecticut. I bleed to serve Bridgeport, Connecticut. And that's what it's about,” Harry Bell, The Color A Positive Thought director, said.

Bell is used to watching over kids during an after-school program in Bridgeport. Now, he and The Color A Positive Thought Organization have taken on a new load of work.

“I knew it was a need but I didn't know the need was this valuable,” Bell said.

They’re setting up a washer and dryer for community members at the Trumbull Gardens Multi-Purpose Center. And the best part is they will be free to use.

Not only can folks find laundry at the community center, there’s also a setup at Cross Elementary School.

We’re told the machines began spinning at the school about a week ago.

“We've had the phone ringing off the hook with people booking up. So it just started and it's quite busy,” Jacklyn Campos-Rodrigues, The Color A Positive Thought program coordinator, said.

They’re available for students and their families to use for free during the school day.

“We can save them a trip to the laundromat, quarters and money they may or may not have and just help them get clean laundry,” Campos-Rodrigues said.

Bell – who also is a security guard at the school – tells us all of the machines were donated.

Helping kids and their families throughout the day from chores to activities.

“The first thing that comes to my mind is community. The second thing; it is needed. Community coming together, doing what's needed,” Bell said.

Now the hope is to expand this service to other schools.