Grace for Vets. That’s the name of the program started a few years ago by Francene Escobar which gives all veterans a free express car wash at Quicki-Kleen in Manteca on Veteran’s Day, Nov. 11.
Escobar said she came up with this idea as a way to honor all veterans and “to show Quicki-Kleen’s support for our armed forces personnel” as well as to “reward all veterans for their service.”
Grace for Vets is also designed to “emphasize to the public the importance” of supporting our veterans, she said.
“Veterans will only need to inform Quicki-Kleen verbally that they are veterans in order to receive their free car wash,” Escobar said.
The Manteca business owner is no stranger to the sacrifices offered by veterans and their families. She and her family walked, and are still walking, in those same shoes. One of her three brothers was Missing in Action in Vietnam.
He remained MIA, as far as her family was concerned, until many years later when they learned that “they put him (his name) on the (Vietnam) Wall” in Washington, D.C., Escobar recalled.
“We didn’t know he was up there” on The Wall, she said, until a family friend and her ex-husband went to D.C. “and saw him (his name) there.” When asked why her family was not notified about her brother being declared Killed in Action officially ending his MIA status, Escobar simply said, “You know how government is.”
Like many of the casualties of the Vietnam War, Escobar’s soldier brother Cencio Guerrero, whom family fondly nicknamed Tacho “because he always used to touch things,” was only 18 years old when he was sent to Vietnam in 1968.
“I was just, probably about 7. I remember him really well,” said Escobar, a graduate of the California State University, San Jose where she received her bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering. She worked at Intel in Santa Clara until she retired seven years ago, five years before the company folded.
Her family never knew how her brother died, Escobar said.
“We always wondered about him; mom never talked about it (the Vietnam War),” she said.
“And then we learned later in history classes when our teachers were telling us that (people) never respected the Vietnam War. We were sad,” recalled Escobar.
Tacho was one of Escobar’s three brothers. One brother, Anthony, is a medical doctor who is now retired and living in Arizona. Her other brother, Jimmy, an engineer like their Filipino Hawaiian father, lives in Stockton. It was this brother who taught her everything she knows about cars – “how to do brake jobs, how to work on car engines – all that stuff,” she said, because, as her brother put it, “We want to teach you because we don’t want you bugging us.” Her one sister, Ramona, also lives in Stockton. All siblings, except for their soldier brother who was killed in Vietnam, graduated from San Jose State.
In addition to Grace for Vets, Escobar’s Quicki-Kleen is also conducting its annual turkey drive for the holidays. She makes a donation for the turkey drive for each #4 car wash requested by customers. She also accepts donations made by individuals to the turkey drive.
Veterans may visit Quicki-Kleen for a free complimentary car wash on Veteran’s Day, Thursday, Nov. 11, during business hours from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
For more information about the free car wash and turkey drive, call (209) 823-9159.
Escobar said she came up with this idea as a way to honor all veterans and “to show Quicki-Kleen’s support for our armed forces personnel” as well as to “reward all veterans for their service.”
Grace for Vets is also designed to “emphasize to the public the importance” of supporting our veterans, she said.
“Veterans will only need to inform Quicki-Kleen verbally that they are veterans in order to receive their free car wash,” Escobar said.
The Manteca business owner is no stranger to the sacrifices offered by veterans and their families. She and her family walked, and are still walking, in those same shoes. One of her three brothers was Missing in Action in Vietnam.
He remained MIA, as far as her family was concerned, until many years later when they learned that “they put him (his name) on the (Vietnam) Wall” in Washington, D.C., Escobar recalled.
“We didn’t know he was up there” on The Wall, she said, until a family friend and her ex-husband went to D.C. “and saw him (his name) there.” When asked why her family was not notified about her brother being declared Killed in Action officially ending his MIA status, Escobar simply said, “You know how government is.”
Like many of the casualties of the Vietnam War, Escobar’s soldier brother Cencio Guerrero, whom family fondly nicknamed Tacho “because he always used to touch things,” was only 18 years old when he was sent to Vietnam in 1968.
“I was just, probably about 7. I remember him really well,” said Escobar, a graduate of the California State University, San Jose where she received her bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering. She worked at Intel in Santa Clara until she retired seven years ago, five years before the company folded.
Her family never knew how her brother died, Escobar said.
“We always wondered about him; mom never talked about it (the Vietnam War),” she said.
“And then we learned later in history classes when our teachers were telling us that (people) never respected the Vietnam War. We were sad,” recalled Escobar.
Tacho was one of Escobar’s three brothers. One brother, Anthony, is a medical doctor who is now retired and living in Arizona. Her other brother, Jimmy, an engineer like their Filipino Hawaiian father, lives in Stockton. It was this brother who taught her everything she knows about cars – “how to do brake jobs, how to work on car engines – all that stuff,” she said, because, as her brother put it, “We want to teach you because we don’t want you bugging us.” Her one sister, Ramona, also lives in Stockton. All siblings, except for their soldier brother who was killed in Vietnam, graduated from San Jose State.
In addition to Grace for Vets, Escobar’s Quicki-Kleen is also conducting its annual turkey drive for the holidays. She makes a donation for the turkey drive for each #4 car wash requested by customers. She also accepts donations made by individuals to the turkey drive.
Veterans may visit Quicki-Kleen for a free complimentary car wash on Veteran’s Day, Thursday, Nov. 11, during business hours from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
For more information about the free car wash and turkey drive, call (209) 823-9159.
