Sindi Roko: “I Didn’t Know This Existed”

Sindi Roko hard at work sorting laundry.

Sindi Roko has volunteered at Corner Shower and Laundry nearly every Wednesday and Saturday morning for the last two months. When not volunteering here, Sindi works at a primary care clinic in Dearborn. 

At the clinic, she had noticed that one of her patients regularly came into the office with unwashed clothes and dirty skin. Eventually, he developed a serious skin condition due to his inability to wash himself. Although they gave him antibiotics for the condition, Sindi realized, "There is only so much we can do." What he really needed was regular access to showers and laundry.

That's when she began looking for resources that she could direct him to. Although she couldn't find any in Dearborn, she learned about Corner Shower and Laundry. She said, "I didn't even know this kind of place existed."

Now, Sindi shared about how much she looks forward to her volunteer shifts each week. She said, "It's really nice to see that there's a little community here. Everybody knows each other's names, everybody gets really familiar with each other. There's some camaraderie that I didn't really think to expect."

Guests regularly thank Sindi for being there, but she clarified that this work really is rewarding and fulfilling for her too. "It's a very humanizing experience...Many people don't get the privilege to learn these stories." 

Although she has been heartened to learn that Corner Shower and Laundry exists, she wishes that there were more places like it. She hopes that Dearborn will one day have a shower and laundry facility that she can recommend to her patients. But in the meantime, she will keep doing what she can to make sure all have access to the services they need.