6,500 volunteers worked around the clock to build over 10,000 beds in just 24 hours for kids who don’t have one of their own.
Inside the Charlotte Convention Center in North Carolina, Lowe’s store employees rolled up their sleeves alongside thousands of others to reach the big goal—all in support of the charity Sleep in Heavenly Peace.
By the end of her shift, Jenna Restrepo had lost count of the boards she’d sanded, hauled or stamped—but it wasn’t the numbers that stayed with her.
“I’m thinking about my own kids,” said the product manager at Lowe’s. “I’m so fortunate to put them in their own beds. I hope every child feels as safe and comfortable as mine.”
More than 140,000 children across the United States are currently waiting for a bed, according to Sleep in Heavenly Peace, which is why partners like Bank of America, Honeywell, Rebuilding Together, and the Charlotte Hornets NBA basketball organization all came together three days ago. (Watch the video at the bottom…)
It took teamwork and coordination—on a scale most volunteer projects never reach—to turn 200 miles-worth of raw lumber into10,027 beds, using 2,000 gallons of stain, over 730,000 wood screws and nearly 18,000 sanding discs.
Roles were doled out in 16 lines, with hundreds of people moved in sync: cutting, sanding, assembling, finishing—each step building on the last.
By the end, all those hands and hours added up to something huge. When the noise of the tools had stopped, thousands of finished beds were stacked and ready to head out to families across 36 states, via the 110 chapters of Sleep in Heavenly Peace.
MORE LOWE’S LOVE: Lowe’s Donates 100 Tiny Homes to Carolina Families Waiting For Rebuilt Housing After Hurricane Flooding
For Lowe’s associates, it was a chance to step out of their usual routines and be part of something important.
“Without consistent, quality sleep, kids fall behind in ways that affect their health and learning,” said Dr. Douglas Kirsch, a medical director of sleep medicine at Atrium Health.
What matters most is simple: a place to sleep and all the possibilities that come with it.
STAGE A BED-IN—And Share This Corporate Love-In On Social Media…