A nearly 20-foot-tall inflatable duck named “Quackals” stands along Palmdale Road in Victorville heralding the opening of the new Quick Quack Car Wash.
Quick Quick officials told the Daily Press the company’s first Victor Valley location had a soft opening on Feb. 2, with a grand opening celebration this week that includes free car washes, prize giveaways and a fundraiser for 22-year-old Marcus Hilton, who lives in Victorville and has cerebral palsy.
During the fundraiser, scheduled from 3 to 6 p.m. Monday, instead of charging for car washes, the Victorville location will ask customers for donations.
Every donation raised for Hilton will be matched dollar-for-dollar by Quick Quack, Shannon Gauthier, Quick Quack marketing leader for Southern California, said.
“All the funds raised will go directly to the Hilton family,” Gauthier said. “We’re hoping to see a big turnout by people coming out to help Marcus.”
The Hiltons are members of the Hesperia-based nonprofit Rock’n Our Disabilities Foundation. Nonprofit officials were contacted by Quick Quack as they sought out a local family to help, said foundation CEO and founder Dana Hernandez.
“Besides washing cars, helping others with donations and fundraisers is what Quick Quack is all about,” Hernandez said. “I’m so happy for what they are doing for Marcus and his family.”
Amber Hilton said funds raised by Quick Quack will help her family pay for a bathroom upgrade, which includes installing a specially designed bathtub that can accommodate Marcus Hilton.
“We’re also saving for an adaptable bike and wheelchair van to transport him to and from appointments and activities,” Hilton said.
Marcus is scheduled for surgery on May 11 at Loma Linda University Medical Center, where a neurosurgical team will replace his baclofen pump.
A tiny catheter will connect the hockey puck-sized pump to Marcus’ spine that will deliver medication directly to the spinal fluid, which should relax his muscles and reduce spasticity, his mother said.
“This will help Marcus have better mobility,” Hilton said. “Since he was 7, he’s had multiple surgeries since birth and over 20 of them have helped him with his spastic cerebral palsy.”
Some of Marcus Hilton’s surgeries have included doctors cutting the bands of tendons in his hamstrings to allow the muscle to stretch out. He’s also had multiple battery and pump replacements, Amber Hilton said.
“Marcus enjoys riding horses weekly for equine therapy for his legs,” Amber Hilton said. “He also loves to play baseball with the High Desert Challenger Little League.”
She said Marcus Hilton’s favorite pastime is outdoor gardening and helping Hernandez’s foundation deliver food boxes to local families in need.
“Rock’n Our Disabilities Foundation has been great to us,” Amber Hilton said. “They supply food to our family and the community every week. Dana has also helped us get a new wheelchair and ramp for our vehicle.”
Quick Quack’s grand opening celebration begins at 7 a.m. Wednesday and includes 12 days of free car washes through March. 7, according to Store Manager Adrian Salvarez.
“The first 100 people to arrive on Wednesday morning will receive a goody bag,” Salvarez, 27, said. “Five of those bags will contain a free year of car washes.”
Salvarez said a special “virtual ribbon-cutting ceremony” is scheduled to begin at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday.
Based in Roseville, Quick Quack has over 100 locations in California, Arizona, Utah, Colorado and Texas, according to Gauthier.
“Our Hesperia location next to ALDI on Bear Valley Road is scheduled to open in the next two months,” Gauthier said. “We’re also considering a third High Desert location.”
Quick Quack Car Wash is located at 15570 Park Avenue and across from Kaiser Permanente’s High Desert Medical Office in Victorville.
For more information, visit www.FaceBook.com/QuickQuackVictorville or www.DontDriveDirty.com.
Daily Press reporter Rene Ray De La Cruz may be reached at 760-951-6227 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @DP_ReneDeLaCruz.
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