Despite a Recession, Goodwill’s Commercial Laundry Keeps Growing

(Fredericksburg, VA)  – A new, three-year contract with the 371-bed George Washington University Hospital in Washington, D.C., is creating 10 new jobs for Goodwill’s commercial laundry facility in Fredericksburg.

The new contract highlights the quality of Goodwill’s work force, says Woody Van Valkenburgh, Rappahannock Goodwill’s president and CEO. Of the 103 people now employed at the laundry facility, 77 are persons with disabilities.

“Going head to head with for-profit businesses and winning is a big accomplishment for us,” he says. People facing barriers to employment, including those with disabilities, “are already devalued in society. So we know we have to do a better job and provide better customer service, and we do.”

Michael Eppehimer, George Washington University Hospital’s assistant administrator, says Goodwill made a strong bid. “In terms of the quality of the service and the quality of the linen, Goodwill was the best for us,” he says. “We were very impressed with the staff, and with the facility.”

This is the third major hospital contract that Goodwill has won in recent years. It will bring in 1.8 million pounds of hospital clothing, bedding and other linens, and raise the laundry’s workload to about 6.3 million pounds a year. The laundry’s working capacity is about 10 million pounds a year. Van Valkenburgh says the contract “establishes us as a business able to handle major clients.”

Rappahannock Goodwill Industries is a private, not-for-profit organization that serves the City of Fredericksburg and a 12-county region. It provides work opportunities and job training to people with barriers to employment, particularly those with disabilities. Its operations include a commercial laundry, off-site custodial and administrative services, and eight retail stores and donation centers.

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