Jake's Car Detailing charity car wash raises $2000 for Ronald McDonald House

On Sunday, September 3, the owner of Jake's Car Detailing and his team of enthusiastic volunteers washed more than 30 cars, raising about $2000 for Ronald McDonald House.

As a father himself, Mr Andrew-Hockley said the children's charity has been one of his go-to causes to support for many years.

"It sort of hits home. I've got two young daughters of my own and I know if they were to ever get sick or anything like that I would want them to have the best services possible," he said.

Another reason the business owner gave for going the extra mile for his community is that it simply feels good to do good.

"It warms my heart as well. I think it's good for the soul to be able to help people like that," he said.

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Mr Andrew-Hockley says he's not planning for the charity car wash to be a one-and-done.

"I'm one of those people that's very goal-oriented. I write down a list of things I want to achieve for the year and three charity events is on that list," Mr Andrew-Hockley said.

The small business owner's first car wash fundraiser in 2020 was "very successful," raising exactly $5000 for the children's charity.

He said he wanted to make it an annual tradition, but the outbreak of COVID-19 forced him to put those plans on hold.

After finally being able to start the fundraiser up again, Mr Andrew-Hockley was a little deflated to see there isn't as much of an appetite for charity car washes as there use to be, with about half as many cars coming through compared to 2020.

"I'd sort of hoped we'd beat the last time, but that didn't happen. I was a little bit disappointed, but $2000 for a charity is a pretty good effort," Mr Andrew-Hockley said.

He said a combination of a tough economy and a busy weekend are likely to blame for the lower turnout.

"With everything like cost of living on the up, and matching up with Father's Day weekend, probably made a little bit difficult," Mr Andrew-Hockley said

But the business owner says he isn't discouraged, and is looking forward to making the charity wash a regular annual event now that COVID is no longer a concern.

On top of that, he's also looking forward to bringing back a regular Christmas toy run, where he raises funds to buy toys for kids living in poorer areas of Tamworth.

The toy run was also put on hiatus during the COVID pandemic, but Mr Andrew-Hockley said bringing it back will put him one step closer to his goal of three charity events per year.

In the meantime, he's also looking into options for a third fundraiser, and says his favourite idea so far is hosting a car show.

"If I can do one more I want to do a charity show and shine," Mr Andrew-Hockley said.

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