A nonprofit dedicated to making sure every child has a bed of their own recently passed a huge milestone — its 2,000th bed made and donated to local children.
Sleep in Heavenly Peace connects children who are sleeping on a couch, with a parent or sibling, on a futon, an air mattress or on the floor with beds handmade by volunteers. Its slogan is “No kid sleeps on the floor in our town!”
The Des Moines chapter of Sleep in Heavenly Peace has been active since 2018. Co-president Lin VandeBerg said that’s when the first bed was built, on Black Friday.
A mom who formerly worked in a sleep lab, VandeBerg said she understands the importance of children getting a good night’s sleep. Sleep loss can affect children’s academic success, health and safety, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics, which considers it a public health issue.
The national Sleep in Heavenly Peace organization predicts 3% of American children sleep without a bed.
With Sleep in Heavenly Peace, VandeBerg has seen seven children in the same family get beds all at once. And she’s seen a 14-year-old break down and cry after having received his bed and sat down on it because he’d never had one before.