Car wash raises money for activist’s funeral

Washington state motorists contributed as much as $100 a piece

Get weird & wonderful news on Twitter

Looking for more strange and fun stories and oddball videos? Follow @msnbc_wow.

Video: Wonderful World

Scientists discover thousands of deep-sea creatures
Nov. 23: Sea Angels, Football Octopods and Jewel Squids are among 17,000 new species found by the world's top marine biologists during a 10-year census expedition of the ocean’s pitch-black depths. ITN’s Annabel Roberts reports.

Cancer patient gets back in the saddle

Astronaut over the moon for daughter’s birth

Good Samartian returns wallet

Helping vulnerable animals

Your turn!

Inspirational athletes
In honor of the 2008 Olympics, we're celebrating the athletes in your own life who inspire greatness.

updated 5:54 p.m. ET June 25, 2009

PARKLAND, Wash. - A lack of money to cover funeral expenses for a community activist in Washington state has prompted her family and friends to raise money in a manner familiar to neighborhood organizations: They held a car wash and bake sale.

Moni Hoy, who once worked with Yolanda Ramos at a neighborhood safety program called Safe Streets, says Tuesday's fundraising efforts yielded about $1,100. The News Tribune of Tacoma says motorists contributed as much as $100 apiece.

Ramos, a 43-year-old single mother of seven, died June 16.

Story continues below ↓

advertisement | your ad here

The family still needs about $1,300 to pay the $4,000 cost of a service and burial planned for Saturday.