Silverstar fills 100 backpacks for Sioux City students
The MOJO-owned wash partnered with Scheels and its own customers to distribute school supplies to local children at an August community event.
By The Car Wash News Staff
2 min read
Silverstar Car Wash in Sioux City, Iowa, ran a back-to-school backpack drive that put filled school supply kits into the hands of 100 local students, according to reporting from Auto Laundry News. The effort brought together the wash's employees, its customers, and a local Scheels sporting goods store.
The initiative was proposed by Erika Bamsey, who was recently promoted to director of the Sioux City market. Her idea was to get supplies directly to children in the community the wash serves every day.
How the drive came together
Scheels donated 100 backpacks for the effort. Silverstar teammates, customers, and Scheels then worked together to collect the supplies needed to fill them. The Silverstar team handled the final step of stuffing the backpacks ahead of a community event held on August 16.
Silverstar is part of the MOJO Family of Brands. CEO Terry Emerson framed the drive as a reflection of the company's values, saying community involvement is central to the operation. VP of operations Andrea Vetos credited Bamsey's idea to a desire to support local families and expressed hope the backpacks would brighten the start of the school year for the 100 students who received them.
Bamsey said the project was meaningful because it let her team make a direct impact locally. She noted that what began as a simple idea grew into a broad collaboration once employees, customers, and the retail partner got involved.
Why it matters for operators
Back-to-school season is a reliable window for local goodwill campaigns, and this drive shows how a single-location effort can scale through partnerships. By enlisting a well-known local retailer to donate the core item and asking customers to contribute supplies, the wash multiplied its impact without shouldering the full cost alone. That model is worth studying for any operator with a limited community-outreach budget.
The drive also illustrates the value of empowering staff to lead. The campaign started as an employee's idea and was executed by the team, which can strengthen morale and retention while generating authentic community engagement. Operators looking to build local ties should consider giving managers latitude to propose and run their own charitable projects rather than dictating campaigns from the top.
Finally, tying outreach to a specific, countable outcome, in this case 100 backpacks for 100 students, gives a wash a clear story to share with customers and on social channels. A concrete number lands better than vague gestures of support, and it creates a natural benchmark the location can aim to match or beat next year.
