By Andy Furman
The Point/Arc
Steve Roark is adding the pounds – and he loves every single one.
Roark is the General Manager of The Point/Arc Commercial Laundry Service and he says he’s seen close to 516,581 pounds in growth this year alone.
Tricia Grace goes happily about her job.
“We’ve added close to 110,00 pounds in December,” he said, “and we’re only halfway through the month.”
The 57-year-old Roark – a Greenhills High School graduate – says several factors have increased the workload of his 17,000-square-foot facility located on Lindsay Street in Dayton, Kentucky.
“First,” he says, “COVID has come close to an end, and people during the summer months were traveling more this year.”
And travelers normally stay at hotels and The Point Commercial Laundry services hotel hospitality – washing and folding bed sheets, contour sheets, pillowcases, comforters, blankets/spreads, towels, bath rugs, mats, robes, table linens and napkins.
Roark also points to family vacations, youth travel teams for sports as well as business travel for the increase in his weight-load.
“Let’s not forget the increased expos at the Convention Center as well,” he said.
Asst. General Manager Paul A. Berleman and Kyle Holland
No stranger to the laundry business, Roark previously oversaw laundry operations for Aramark’s Midwest service – he’s worked in laundry management over 30 years.
At The Point/Arc he oversees a staff of 22 employees who work seven-days-a-week, 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
“Ten of my workers are individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities – known as I/DD,” he said. “These workers mostly come from the neighborhood – Dayton, Bellevue, Newport and Covington.”
They’ll walk to work, or take the bus, Roark says, and the age ranges from 20 to 65; four people are over 65 years old.
“What I do is simple,” said Roark, “I coach, massage, mentor, and train them. I teach all of them to be more independent. How to work with their peers; and hopefully they’ll be able to work anywhere.
“My goal,” he continued, “is helping them move forward with their lives.”
And while he’s mentoring his staff, Roark is concerned with the competition.
“But,” Roark claims, “our pricing is very competitive.”
The increased business has allowed The Point Commercial Laundry to install four new front loaders last month according to Roark. “We had some major assistance from our donors, as well,” he said.
Elizabeth Hensley
The seven-year General Manager has this laundry business broken down by pounds-per-hour:
• Washroom: 2,000/pounds/hour
• Ironer 1 and 2: 1,200 sheets/hour; 2,400 sheets/hour
• Ironer 3: Pillowcases, 1,800/hour
“Honestly, I didn’t know about The Point/Arc, their mission – and certainly had no idea about I/DD people working in the laundry when I first arrived here,” he admitted. “It’s totally a different mindset here, but quite rewarding.”
The Point/Arc is celebrating its 50th year of service in 2022.
It was founded by a group of parents in 1972 fighting for the educational rights of their children who were diagnosed with an intellectual and developmental (I/DD) disability. The mission to help people with disabilities achieve their highest potential, socially, educationally, residentially and vocationally.
More than this, The Point/Arc has been an organization that identifies gaps in services and provides care and support to fill these gaps – even when government funding sources are not available.
That mission is accomplished daily at the Point/Arc Commercial Laundry – and, at the same time they’re keeping business hospitality clean.
“Every day,” says Roark, “is like giving back a gift working here.”
A clean one at that.
