So what do you need to organize a car wash in your neighborhood for charity?

• You need to know how many people you want to participate. The minimum number you will need is around 10 people.
• Look at a long-range weather forecast to choose the day and time that you want to hold your car wash. You will get far more people to pay for a car wash if the weather is great.
• Make sure that the date is okay with everyone you have asked to help you. If you find that some people can only be there during certain hours, then why not do up a roster so that they’ll only be there for a couple of hours at a time.
• It is not a good idea to hold a car wash in a parking lot, because the suds and water, along with dirt and grime, will run off into the storm drains which then feed into rivers, lakes and the sea. Instead try to get your local car wash involved so that you can make use of their environmentally friendly facilities.
• Make sure that you fill them in on all the details of the charity that you are working for and ask them to advise you if you will need permission from your local authority to hold your charity car wash.
• Is the car wash that you choose in a prominent position? You need one either on a main road or one that is frequented by a lot of customers. Choose a car wash in your local neighborhood, so that you can let as many of the locals know as soon as possible.
• Determine a suitable price for your car wash, because you don’t want to price yourself out of the market, and if people can get a car wash cheaper down the road then they will bypass you.
• Try to get your local neighborhood newspaper to support you by placing an ad in their paper so that people know where you are and what time you will be there.
• Make some big signs and posters and put them up all around the car wash so that they are in a prominent position for prospective customers to see. Make sure that the lettering is large enough for the motorist to read. Be sure to mention on the posters or signs, the name of the charity you are working for, because people are more likely to support you if they know you are working for charity.

Organizing anything in your community is a great idea to get the whole neighborhood involved and it’s also a great way to meet your neighbors. Just make sure that you are having fun while you’re making money for others who are not as privileged as you are.

House Neighborhood

You’ve been waiting to go on vacation for a whole year, and now the time has come. But, before you leave, you have to make sure that your home is safe and secure. Remember that burglars don’t take vacations!

Spend some time looking around your home to see if there are any points of entry that need securing. Don’t forget to lock a doggy-door if you have one, as burglars will use any means to get into your home. If you’ve got a house key hidden somewhere which is normally a place you would look for it, move it to a more secure place.

If you’re friendly with the neighbor next door, ask them to hold onto your spare key in case of an emergency. Be sure to give your neighbor details of where you’re staying and a phone number so they can call if there are any problems. Ask your neighbor to empty your mailbox of junk mail and to pick up any local newspapers left for you.

You need to give your home that lived-in look. If there isn’t any activity around your home for days on end, people in your community will notice, and the problem is that you really don’t know what all the people in your neighborhood are like.

If your car is normally parked outside your garage, then leave it there and ask your neighbor to keep it clear of snow or leaves, depending on the time of year. If you live in an area which gets a lot of snow, ask your friendly neighbor to keep your driveway clear. Leaving your car parked for days on end with snow built up all around it, is a sure giveaway that nobody is home.

Have your neighbor put your bins out as usual on collection days, and bring them back inside when they’ve been emptied. If an emptied bin sits out for days on end, you are giving the burglars a “no-one’s home” signal. Do you have a dog? Leaving a dog, especially a noisy one, in their own environment, is a great deterrent to burglars. If anyone comes near your home it will set your dog off and hopefully the neighbors’ dog as well. Ask your neighbor to make sure your dog is fed and is given water and shelter. This can sometimes be a better arrangement than putting your dog into a doggy vacation home!

Asking your neighbors to do everything for you while you’re away can often work well, but sometimes it doesn’t and it can cause friction between you. If that is the case, then why not get a relative or friend to houses it for you? This takes all the responsibility off your neighbors and gives you peace of mind knowing that someone is in your home. This also works well if you don’t want to place your pets into a kennel. If you are an avid gardener and don’t want your plants to die while you’re away, then you also solve that problem.

Whatever you decide to do before you go away, be discreet and don’t tell anyone who will listen that you’re going on vacation. You may just tell the wrong person and you may find out on your return home, that your home has been burgled. Keep your home safe while you’re on vacation, so that you know you’ll be coming back to it the same way you left it.