Community turns up for carwash

There was no sign of sadness or anger Saturday at a carwash benefiting the family of Israel Maciel, who was gunned down Wednesday in an alley outside his Costa Mesa apartment.

“Right now, with everybody’s support, there is no real downtime,” said Maciel’s cousin, Nester Contreras, as he collected donations and thanked those who put cash in the jar. “The tears that have been shed aren’t tears for the loss, they’re tears for the support.”

Jody Foss and her fiancee CK Green, both of Costa Mesa, came after reading about Maciel and the carwash in the Daily Pilot.

“The whole ordeal affects the whole community,” said Green, a baseball coach at Estancia High School, as he waited for his truck to be washed. “You can see it; everybody came to help out, both washing and paying.”

Money collected at the carwash will help offset funeral costs. Family friend Kathy Ceja organized the fundraiser at the Ferrari and Maserati of Orange County dealership on Baker Street, just a block from where the shooting took place, on short notice.

“We appreciate the dealership here for letting us use the lot,” Contreras said. “No matter whether they’re selling Maseratis or Volkswagens, it’s about community.”

Contreras said the outpouring of support ? he estimated they washed an average of 20 cars per hour ? united his family and the community.

“It’s all kinds of ages, ethnicities and people out here for the family,” the Riverside resident said. “Whoever has been affected by violence. It’s great when we are able to get together and set aside our differences.”

John Taylor of Mesa Verde spoke with volunteers and shook Contreras’ hand while waiting for his car to be washed.

“The stupidity of it all,” he said. “The violence affects the community.”

Lindsey Torres, 19, and Tanya Portillo, 15, did not know Maciel very well, but when they heard about the carwash, they didn’t hesitate in making the drive from Santa Ana to help.

“We’re here to support our friend and his family,” Tanya said. “If this was for me, I would want people’s support.”

Maciel was a hard worker and helped his family all he could by working at the Jack’s Surfboards warehouse in Huntington Beach, Contreras said, and the carwash was reminiscent of his work ethic.

“Israel helped out his family a lot,” he said. “The money that’s going to be raised will only be a minute amount compared to what he could have done.

“Everybody out there is not immune to violence, whether it’s directly or indirectly. It’s happening every day, and it’s about educating about the effects and preventing it.”

Contreras said that as of Saturday evening, the family hadn’t counted the money raised.