local non-profit, Sleep in Heavenly Peace, gives the gift of a good nights sleep
A Saturday for many is sleeping in late and football with friends. But for one area non-profit, it is the chance to give the gift of a goodnight sleep. The Iowa Chapter of Sleep in Heavenly Peace delivered 100 beds to children around the area on Saturday who have been spending their nights without one.
"If there's anything we can do about it, we want to make sure every child in this community, every child in Linn county has a bed to sleep in," said Chapter President, Mark Conzett.
The process of putting together the twin sized beds starts in a warehouse. There, the headboards and slacks are put together. On delivery day, volunteers assemble the frame and provide a brand new mattress and fresh bedding.
The group currently has a waiting list of about 180 children. That number grew after many homes were damaged or destroyed from the August 10th derecho. Iowa Giving Crew teamed up with Sleep in Heavenly Peace to help build and deliver the beds.
"They needed some assistance because of the increase needs of beds. So we wanted to help out and funnel some of our funds to them and some volunteers to help out with their cause," said Nick Dusil, President of Iowa Giving Crew.
While it has been two months since the derecho, the groups acknowledge that the need for help is still out there and they will do what they can to continue to help.
"There is a refugee community here in town that is still in need of housing. And I know very well that as soon as they get into these homes, they are going to need beds. So that's why we exist. We exist for one reason and that is that no kid sleeps on the floor in our town," said Consett.
"It's been 2 months but those recoveries will go on for many more months. There's a lot more work that needs to be done and so we just need to pitch in and continue to help each other out and we'll all get through it together," said Dusil.
Sleep in Heavenly Peace plans to have more building events by the end of this year. They encourage anyone to come out to volunteer. To find out how you can get involved, you can find the information on their Facebook page.
