Child Protection United States Project #6365

Provide beds for 300 kids sleeping on the floor

by Community Warehouse

Provide beds for 300 kids sleeping on the floor

Project Report | Aug 21, 2012
Bringing Smiles & Comfy Sleep to Kids

By Kristy Wood | Executive Director

Kids smiling with their new beds

Greetings Beds for Kids supporters,

As we wrap up the summer, I’d like to share a few highlights from the last few months of the Beds for Kids program:

A donation of several dozen beautiful homemade pillowcases. Imagine a child going to sleep in their own bed for the first time after months of sleeping on the floor, and the extra comfort brought by a fun, colorful pillowcase made with love.
A couple who came to drop off some gently used furniture at the Warehouse learned that we were extremely short on bed pillows, and came back the next day with 50 brand new pillows that they had purchased for our program.
Two local Ronald McDonald Houses donated a dozen assorted mattresses, plus we received another load of twin mattresses from the Portland Fire Department! The word is really getting out there about these high need items.

The generous response from our community has put us in a great position as we work to meet the need for beds for children heading back to school this month. Because we have been so well stocked with mattresses, last week we were able to help a rental rights advocacy organization provide 17 beds to eight immigrant families whose furnishings had been damaged through a sub-standard housing situation.

With this and every story of the people who come through the Warehouse, we know we are doing so much more than simply providing goods. This recent e-mail received by our program manager is an example of the impact that a few simple household items can have in brightening someone’s day:

Hi Tom, I just wanted to say thank you for everything! You and everyone at Community Warehouse are wonderful. I came in with my client on Tuesday and despite it being super busy, you made us feel welcome and provided us with amazing service. My client was ecstatic to say the least to obtain her items. When they were delivered to her apartment she was all smiles (and this is from a client that rarely smiles). Thanks for all the work you do.
-Melissa, Cascadia Behavioral Health

On behalf of advocates like Melissa and the families she serves, we would like to thank YOU for helping to bring smiles to the faces of those who for a long time have had little reason to smile. Your support goes such a long way in transforming the lives of children and families in need. Do you know of a Portland metro area family in need of furnishings, or a church, school, or other organization with community advocates that come in regular contact with vulnerable populations? Please refer them to us! We are particularly seeking new partners to help us reach clients in Washington and Clackamas counties. Together, we know we can ensure that everyone who can benefit from our program has the opportunity to access it.

Homemade pillowcases!

Pile of new pillows

Thanks Portland Fire Department!

Links:

Community Warehouse

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May 29, 2012
Beds for Refugee Children & the Westside

By Kristy Wood | Executive Director

Refugee Girl With Blanket

Greetings Beds for Kids supporters,

We have exciting news to share: the Beds for Kids project has undertaken a major expansion through the launch of our Westside Warehouse in Tualatin, Oregon. This is our second full service Warehouse, and will serve clients in Washington and Clackamas counties. We’ve been collecting furniture donations at the site since late March, and the first families arrived to receive assistance just last week.

So far this year, Community Warehouse has provided 467 mattresses, pillows and sets of bedding to children. The new Westside Warehouse will allow us to reach even more children in need of safe, comfy restful sleep. We know that some of the kids who receive beds through the project have previously been sleeping on the floor, and in many cases have come through traumatic experiences. Here is an e-mail that our program manager, Tom, recently received from a case manager with one of our partner agencies, the Immigrant and Refugee Community Organization (IRCO):

“Hey Tom,

Just wanted to thank you, Eric, and the rest of your staff for all your help. My client was very grateful for all the furniture they got. Their kids have been sleeping on the floor for months. I especially want to thank Eric for accommodating us as they needed much more than we originally requested….Thanks again!”

- Lyle Matsuura, Asian Family Center

Through your contributions to the Beds for Kids project, you are helping people like Lyle who are working directly with the families most in need in our community. All the requests that Community Warehouse fills come through referrals by partner agencies. The case managers at these agencies verify that their clients have no other resources for accessing furniture and basic household goods to furnish the apartments they are moving into. In the case of the Immigrant and Refugee Community Organization, families are often coming with little more than the clothes on their backs. By providing beds and more we are freeing up resources at our partner agencies to assist families with rent, utilities, and job training. Together, our combined efforts go further than we could alone in helping these vulnerable people rebuild their lives.

Another essential part of getting beds to kids is the in-kind donations of twin and double mattresses from individuals, businesses and organizations. We recently received a donation of several twin mattresses from an unexpected source: the Portland Fire Department! When they were changing out some of the beds in their dormitories, we’re lucky that they knew to think of Community Warehouse as an option for putting their used mattresses to good use. This makes us wonder whether there are other types of organizations and businesses that we might not have connected with yet. Do you have any ideas? Individuals tend to hang onto their twin beds for a long time, and pass them on to friends and family which is great, but it means that we often end up with a surplus of queen mattresses and a shortage of twins and doubles suitable for kids. We’re always looking for more sources, so if you can think of any suggestions please send them our way.

The network of support that makes the Beds for Kids project possible includes our partners like Lyle and IRCO, organizations like the Portland Fire Department, and of course, YOU! We can’t do it without you. The next GlobalGiving Bonus Day is coming up on June 13^th, and we hope you will take the opportunity to consider an additional gift to provide beds for kids or pass this report on to a friend. Thank you so much for your support.

Twin Mattresses from the Portland Fire Department

Westside Warehouse Launch

Links:

Community Warehouse

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Mar 6, 2012
Beds for Kids In the News!

By Kristy Wood | Executive Director

Family getting beds in January, 2012

Greetings from Community Warehouse! We’d like to extend a special round of appreciation to all of our new and renewing holiday Beds for Kids donors through GlobalGiving. In December and January we had 18 donors giving a total of $601. That’s enough to fund 15 beds for children. Just over a year into our GlobalGiving project, we’ve raised $1,665 and provided 42 beds through your support. We only need 4 more new individual donors to reach 50 total donors, and only $320 more in gifts to have funded 50 beds for children. Wouldn’t those be great milestones to hit this spring? Read on to learn more including how you can help. Oh, and don’t forget to let us know if you’d like to join our e-newsletter list for more regular updates including our Immediate Needs list of specific items needed in the Warehouse right away.

What's new with the Community Warehouse Beds for Kids Project, you ask? Well - quite frankly, just that. The NEWS! After a number of fairly sparse weeks at the Warehouse, we're finally starting to see the floor and shelves fill again. This is thanks, due in large part, to our local news stations and a great response from the community.

KATU News visited the Warehouse on 2/15, took some footage, and pulled together a great story. Watch the news segment live HERE. Camcorders and reporters found their way back through the Warehouse doors on 2/18, when KPTV FOX 12 News arrived to film another brief story with the help of new Warehouse staff member Nate, Volunteer Coordinator Andy, and a couple of generous donors. Watch this great news clip HERE.

If you have wondered where all the mattresses, box springs, and bedding come from for the Beds for Kids Project, the answer is: people just like you. Community Warehouse depends on donations of gently used items that we are able to connect with families who desperately need them. Often, we know that those we have helped at one point are the same people completing the circle by donating items they no longer need. Arleen, a volunteer at our Westside Donation Center, shares a recent story:

"I was at the West Side donation center in the afternoon and two women came in with a nice truckload of donations including a mattress and household items. I thanked them and one of them turned around and said very seriously, 'You helped my brother.' She said it with such feeling and meaning that I knew our assistance was only one part of a complex situation but an important one."

If you’re in the Portland metro area or know people who are, click here to learn more about how to support our efforts through in-kind goods.

If you’re short on stuff but would like to sponsor another bed for a child, a great day to do so is the next GlobalGiving Bonus Day coming up on Wednesday, March 14^th!

Give to Community Warehouse's Beds for Kids project through Global Giving on this day and your donations will be matched at 30-50%. That means even more pillows, blankets, sheets and mattress for kids who have been sleeping on the floor, the couch or with family members. Mark your calendars with this link and share it with your friends:
http://www.globalgiving.org/projects/bedsforkids/ Thanks for your support!

March is an exciting time at Community Warehouse for another reason: it’s CHAIR AFFAIR time! If you haven’t heard of this fun and fabulous annual event (held on Thursday 3/15 this year) you can learn more here: http://www.communitywarehouse.org/chairaffair Proceeds from the special appeal at this event will fund the Beds for Kids project. It’s also a great way to meet everyone involved and to learn more, including hearing directly from a case manager and client who will share their stories with guests.

We’d love to see you there, or hear from you any time with your ideas and feedback as we continue working to put used goods to good use.

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