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Having felt the tread
of hundreds of pairs of feet, most of them traveling from a state of pain
into relief on the other side, the carpet which lies on the floor of the
lobby of CHARG Resource Center had—prior to remedial treatment by COIT Cleaners—seen
infinitely better days.
From having witnessed
emergencies of every kind on up to dances of celebration, the old rug was
dying a bitter death, and short of replacing it (at a cost no one was prepared
to pay), it looked doomed. What was there to be done but apologize to everyone
who entered the room for the first time. “We’re going to replace this soon,”
was the rationalization.
The entire staff of CHARG—which
is a small private clinic devoted to helping those with problems of various
kinds—had gotten to a place of denial and disgust at the condition of the
old carpet. Many a cup of coffee had dribbled its way onto the floor, just
as had many muddy feet been scraped there.
What was to be done?
Funny enough, but after years of hearing their ads on the radio, I decided
to see what might be the chance that COIT would donate a cleaning
to CHARG. I called COIT (which can be reached locally at 303-922-9212 or
nationally at 1-800-For-COIT).A fellow there named Ron referred me to a
woman on the staff named Derrie who made an appointment and showed up at
CHARG a few days later.
Derrie tried to conceal
her horror at the condition of the carpet, but, ever the professional, took
measurements and notes. She got back to us and we were delighted to find
that COIT, which is a national company in business since 1950 agreed to
donate a cleaning.
COIT began in San
Francisco (home to the famous COIT Tower), and has been in business here
for 39 years. They clean upholstery, draperies, tile and air ducts and do
restoration. For all of these services, they employ 60 shiny black vans
in town.
Two stalwart men—Bill
and Paul-- showed up on a Saturday morning to do the job. They introduced
themselves and asked to be shown to the nearest outdoor water outlet to
hook up their equipment. Another CHARG representative and I made ourselves
available to move furniture and help in any way necessary. The COIT men
knew their job, however, and required little assistance.
While admitting that
our carpet looked horrendous, they said they had seen worse. Bill and Paul
went to work applying a patented “spotter” which activates the dirt to bring
it up to the surface.
Then, they use “a freeze
spray” which sucks the dirt out. I asked them what chemicals they used,
but they declined to elaborate.
An hour later, as
Paul pulled the freeze sprayer out the front door, the lobby of CHARG looked
like a brand-new facility, all ready for the arrival of clients and professionals,
drug reps and visitors, none of whom would remember what condition the carpet
had been in before.
The appreciation of
those who spend their working hours in that room, however, is inestimable,
and owes a tremendous debt of gratitude to COIT for its professionalism
and generosity. For a number of years to come, CHARG can show a bright face
to the world now with a carpet that has come back to life. Astonishing what
one hour of know-how can accomplish.
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