You do not have to do every load yourself. If you are doing all of it, the reason is usually that nobody has counted the hours. Start there.
Local option: New Plan Care gives families in the St. Louis area in-home help so a parent can stay home: companionship, help with bathing and dressing, meals, and overnight care. Call (314) 405-0887.
Count one real week before you decide
Keep a notebook by the machine for seven days. Write down every load: bedding, towels, everyday clothing, and anything that came home soiled and had to go straight in. Note the time from picking up the basket to the last folded item going back in a drawer. Then write down the loads you skipped because you ran out of energy, and what you did instead. The skipped column matters most. A count of the loads you washed is only half the picture.
Check the house before you check the company
Where is the washer? If it sits down a flight of stairs, the basket is the real problem, not the machine. Decide who carries it, and whether the person you hire is willing and able to carry it. Look at the dryer vent, the water heater, and whether the machine runs without you standing next to it. Write down what the machine needs and who calls for repairs. If the answer is you, that is a task too, and it belongs on the list.
Ask the service the questions that matter
If you compare a laundry pickup service or an in-home helper who does household work, ask these before you sign anything. Who handles soiled items, and do they arrive in a bag you can control? How long from pickup to return, and what happens when a load comes back wrong? Who decides when a sheet or towel is too worn to keep? Will they follow the care label on your parent's clothing, and is that written down? What is the policy on lost or damaged items, and is it in writing? If a pickup is missed, who do you call, and how fast do they answer? Is the schedule fixed, or do you have to request each pickup?
Run a trial before you commit
Pick one week. Send out only the bulky loads, bedding and towels, and keep the everyday clothing yourself. Track what came back, how long it took, and how many times you had to explain the same thing. If the bulky loads return on time and in one piece, you have a route you can build on. If you spent the week texting about a missing towel, that is an answer too. Sending out the wrong part of the work is not a failure. It is how you find out which part you can hand off.
Know what you are actually buying
You are buying back hours, and you are also buying a routine someone else has to keep. A hand-off only works if the schedule holds in the weeks you are sick, tired, or away. Before you choose, write one line that says what goes out and what stays with you. Tape it next to the washer. That paper is your laundry backup plan, and it will still work after the next helper or service changes.
If you are weighing paid help beyond laundry, the Local Help for Caregivers in St. Louis page is a sensible place to start.