HERMISTON — Most of us would look at Rick’s Car Wash in Hermiston as a place to wash your vehicle. But for new owner Oscar Cota, it’s much more than that.

“It’s a place of opportunity,” he said. Cota and his wife, Allainna Abbott, purchased the car wash, located on the east side of Main Street, in May from Rick Jewett. Since then, Cota has given jobs to numerous young people for whom finding work can be a challenge.

“They’re just kids who need some guidance,” Cota said. “Maybe they come from a troubled home or a broken family. I just started talking to them and seeing if I could steer them in the right direction.”

Cota, 43, has a history of working with children. He’s coached Grid Kids football, Little League as well as high school students. He said everybody, regardless of their past, deserves a chance.

“Just because a kid gets in some trouble doesn’t mean they are bad kids,” he said. “Everyone is subject to change.”

During the hot summer months, Cota hires about a dozen children – including his own – to work at the car wash, some as young as 15. Now that the weather is cooling, he cuts it back to about five or six youth.

“A lot of kids come by and make this their first job,” he said.

As a child, Cota remembers seeing the car wash when he would hang out at a nearby baseball field. Later on, he got a job at the car wash.

“I said to myself that some day it was going to be mine,” he said. “Sure enough, I worked hard and when the opportunity came along, I jumped on it.”

He and his wife are the first people in their families to own a business. On Thursday, Oct. 12, Cota and Abbott proudly welcomed friends and family to a ribbon-cutting ceremony hosted by the Hermiston Chamber of Commerce.

Cota said he never considered changing the name to Oscar’s Car Wash.

“Everybody knows it as Rick’s Car Wash,” Cota said. “It’s a piece of Hermiston history.”