A new nonprofit that serves Eureka and parts of northwest Jefferson County is looking for volunteers and donations to kickstart its mission: ensuring no child has to spend another night sleeping on the floor.
The Eureka chapter of Sleep in Heavenly Peace makes beds by hand for local children in need.
The eight-member group is inviting service-minded people to help make more beds at its community “bed build” day from 8 a.m. to noon on Saturday, Sept. 13, at The River at Eureka, 215 North Central Ave.
Communications director Janet Koth of Eureka said the chapter serves the Eureka, Fenton, High Ridge and Valley Park areas.
She said the nationwide organization has about 350 chapters in all 50 states, delivering 300,000 beds to children and families since its inception in 2012.
Koth and her husband, Kurt, who serves as the chapter’s president, helped at a build day in Utah last June. She said the experience inspired the couple to establish a chapter in Eureka.
“(The bed build day) was just wonderful, because it was so organized, like an assembly line,” Koth said. “Nobody has to have experience with woodworking, because I had never run a drill press, and I did just fine. We built the beds; then we went and did some deliveries.”
The Utah chapter took five beds to one house while the Koths were visiting. The children were sleeping on piles of clothes on the floor before Sleep in Heavenly Peace delivered the beds, Koth said.
“This little girl came in and we had her bed set up with a unicorn, rainbow kind of bedding, and she squealed, ‘I have my own bed! I have my own bed!’” Koth said. “It’s hard not to tear up, you know, because it’s not like we’re giving them a new Xbox game. We’re giving them a bed, which you think is so basic.”
The Sleep in Heavenly Peace Eureka Chapter builds and donates children’s bunk beds.
According to the nonprofit’s website, 2-3 percent of American children don’t sleep in beds, often meaning they are forced to sleep on the floor or on couches. A bad night’s sleep, due in part to a lack of a bed, can greatly affect a child’s mental and physical health, the nonprofit goes on to say, and can lead to poor school grades, emotional outbursts, sickness and obesity.
Based on applications filed with the nonprofit, more than 160,000 beds are currently needed for children nationwide. The charity accepts monetary donations, along with donations of wood, tools and new, twin-sized sheet sets, comforters, and beds-in-a-bag (bedding sets).
Koth said the chapter’s goal is to build 20 beds on the Sept. 13 build day. Anyone interested may sign up at shpbeds.org/chapter/mo-eureka. Volunteers will need to sign a waiver before building begins.
For more information, call 314-690-8228.
The chapter’s website also has information about how to apply for a bed or start another chapter.
The chapter is also trying to drum up support for bedding drives, Koth said. The chapter will help schools, businesses, churches or other entities that want to start a drive.
Koth said no experience is necessary to join the build day. Children are encouraged to help, but they must be accompanied by an adult. She said the project would be a good way for teenagers to log service hours.
“It’s really about building community, as well as building beds,” she said.