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On August 12, the Fort Saskatchewan Rotary Club presented a check for $ 5,000 to the Sherwood Park Chapter of Sleep in Heavenly Peace (SHP). The money will support the partnership to build and provide beds for people without beds.
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Sleep in Heavenly Peace is a registered charity dedicated to providing beds for children in need. The Sherwood Park chapter was started in Neil Hayes’ garage two years ago and has grown rapidly from there, now expanding to provide beds in Fort Saskatchewan.
“It was designed to help meet the needs of children,” said Hayes. “I have worked in several charities, including boys ‘and girls’ clubs, and I have seen it myself, children on the floor. I guess it really affected me, some things you can’t ignore. So I just started making beds for the kids that were on the floor that I found on Kijiji. Someone mentioned SHP and I hooked up with them and got into the association and we just went from there.
SHP works with community social services to refer residents who need beds. The chapter meets once a week to raise funds for mattresses and bedding, gather supplies, and build beds. Their next community building will take place on August 21 in Sherwood Park at Trinity Baptist Church. The group plans to build 25 beds in a single session with the help of local Rotary clubs.
“We thought it was something big,” said Terry Stacey, president of Rotary Club Fort Saskatchewan. “It’s a community event, people in the community can come and volunteer and build the beds, businesses can donate and sponsor a bed, and we’re working with our local Interact club who will be doing a bedding drive and get together everything you need for a bed. We are really excited about this. The need in this community and surrounding areas is quite great. Any little thing we can do to help we are happy to do it, because that’s what Rotary is all about.
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Rotary Fort Saskatchewan and Sherwood Park Sleep in Heavenly Peace are now long-term partners to bring beds to the community. To get involved in the construction of the bed, contact the Rotary Club at fortsaskrotaryclub@gmail.com or with SHP through their website at www.shpbeds.org/chapter/ab-strathcona-co.
“Our goal is that no child is sleeping on the floor in our city,” said Hayes. “So in Fort Saskatchewan we want to make sure that no child is sleeping on the floor. We have already started bringing in beds and putting them in Fort Saskatchewan. Our research indicates that about 2-3 percent of all children in Canada sleep on the floor, and that really motivates us. We just think everyone deserves a good night’s sleep. We build beds, that’s all we do. And we will continue until there are no more children sleeping on the floor.
It’s a simple model, but it’s a crucial service to the community.
jbonnell@postmedia.com