The Nye County Chapter of Sleep in Heavenly Peace hosted its very first Winter Community Bed Build last month and group members were not disappointed by the results.
Following four hours of bed frame construction, this nonprofit was able to build two dozen new beds that are now destined to be delivered to the homes of children who don’t have a bed to call their own.
“The event was a great success!” Nye County Sleep in Heavenly Peace member Michelle Caird told the Pahrump Valley Times afterward. “We had beautiful weather and talented, hardworking volunteers with unlimited enthusiasm.”
Previously, Nye County SHP has only held one large-scale community bed build each year, in conjunction with the national organization’s Bunks Across America initiative. However, the local need was such that just five months after its last bed build, the group was geared up for another.
“Our chapter of Sleep in Heavenly Peace has been receiving a large influx of requests,” Caird explained. “We decided to have a Winter Bed Build to try get these beds to the kids sooner, so they are able to get a good night’s sleep.”
There were around 35 to 40 volunteers manning the various work stations on Feb. 17, helping to register participants, sand wood, mark drill holes, stain pieces of lumber and more.
“Judge Kim Wanker attended the build and brought six drug court individuals who came early and were some of the last to leave,” Caird detailed. “We also had members of the Ms. Senior Golden Years and Soroptimist International Pahrump Valley organizations lending a hand.
“Thank you to all the volunteers and generous donors who helped make our event such a great success,” she continued. “To the Pahrump Valley Garden Club, which donated $250, Gregg Schatzman and Saddle West, who donated $500 and the anonymous donors, whose contributions totaled $520. Monetary donations help to purchase mattresses and bed building supplies. Thank you also to Sharon Tate, for providing our building location and facility, and to the fabulous volunteers who make our beautiful handmade quilts and pillows.”
Caird said the local chapter is doing well but of course, there is always the need for additional volunteers, both to build beds and to deliver them.
“Our list of bed requests is steady and we look forward to filling as many as possible, as quickly as possible,” Caird remarked. “We encourage those needing a bed to apply at the Sleep in Heavenly Peace website SHPBeds.org.”
For more information on the local chapter or to volunteer or donate, contact chapter president Carmen Murzyn at 775-910-8921.
Contact reporter Robin Hebrock at rhebrock@pvtimes.com