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Many Bedford County-area residents would be shocked to learn how many families do not have essential amenities such as a basic bed for their children. While people can take this simple item for granted, a bed is arguably one of the most important parts of a living space. It is the first and last thing a person sees throughout the day, and in terms of health and sleep, having a bed can be as important as having a roof over one’s head. According to the estimates of Sleep in Heavenly Peace (a non-profit organization that began in 2012), roughly 5% of any given community’s children sleep without beds.

While this situation exists for a variety of different reasons, Sleep in Heavenly Peace has been dedicated to providing children in families without beds a place to sleep, free of charge with no strings attached. This year in July, Madeline Fontenot founded its Bedford County Chapter along with her husband Austin, and the program has already delivered 142 beds to local residents. When asked what motivated Madeline and Austin to start the Chapter, she stated that, “We like to serve in our community and, while not native to Bedford County, we love it here and want to make our community better if we can. As we grow and continue to meet the needs in Bedford County, we will hopefully expand into neighboring counties.”

The Chapter hosts “build days” at which volunteers construct the beds that they will deliver to homes later. According to Madeline, “On build days we have 50-100 people coming out to support the mission: No kid sleeps on the floor in our town. [It is] important to note that no special skills are required, and we provide all training and tools. There are jobs that do not involve building for those who do not wish to do this component, such as marketing, community awareness, language translation, fundraising, etc.” Madeline and Austin have made it easy and accessible to volunteer and further the mission of this Chapter of Sleep in Heavenly Peace.

When asked what strikes Madeline the most strongly while delivering beds, she said that, “Poverty can be hard to see from the outside of a home. There is a greater need than most know.” Bedford County cannot overstate the impact that two people like Madeline and Austin (and the many volunteers) can have in our community by doing things as simple and straightforward as starting a group to deliver beds to those in need. In terms of volunteering for this Chapter, Madeline said that, “Anyone interested in volunteering can email me directly or go to our website and use the contact us link or through our Facebook page.” With many new beds ready for delivery, the Bedford County Chapter of Sleep in Heavenly Peace shows no signs of slowing down in its goal of providing every child with this basic material need as well as the dignity that goes with it.

There are 11 chapters of Sleep in Heavenly Peace in Tennessee. The closest other chapters are located in Columbia and South Pittsburg.