Sleepyhead Beds receives $25,000 grant with help from the KC ad community
After weeks of voting via Facebook, Sleepyhead Beds today was awarded one of five $25,000 grants from the Mercedes-Benz Community Stars program.
“So many deserving organizations were nominated for the Community Stars program, and we’re incredibly honored to be one of the winners. The funding will allow us to provide beds for more children, sooner than we’d thought possible,” Monica Starr, Sleepyhead Beds founder, said.
The Mercedes-Benz Community Stars program is a way for Mercedes-Benz dealers across the country to support deserving organizations in their communities. Locally, both Aristocrat Motors and Mercedes-Benz of Kansas City have also supported Sleepyhead Beds through bed drives and helping increase awareness of the organization throughout the city.
During the past three weeks in October, Facebook users have had the chance to vote for their choice of fifteen different finalist organizations from across the United States. Each organization posted a short video to share their mission with Facebook users.
“For an organization as young as ours, a grant like this is truly a game-changer. We’ll be able to accomplish things we didn’t think would be possible this year, and that means more Kansas City children will have a comfy place to sleep at night,” Starr added.
Sleepyhead Beds has not yet determined what the $25,000 will specifically be used for, but initial ideas include buying a new truck to help make delivering local beds more efficient.
About Sleepyhead Beds
Sleepyhead Beds is a non-profit charitable organization serving the greater Kansas City area. Their mission is to provide a cozy bed and warm bedding to children in need.
Sleepyhead Beds was dreamed up while their founders were working with Jackson County CASA and Operation Breakthrough. They discovered that thousands of Kansas City kids were without beds of their own – either sleeping on the floor or sharing one bed with 3 or more siblings.
Sleepyhead Beds looked to community resources for help. While there are plenty of great area resources providing housing, food and shelter, none of these agencies are equipped to handle beds. Sleepyhead Beds then thought of the outgrown beds sitting in garages and basements of the people they knew and sent out an email plea. The response was overwhelming, and a lightbulb went off.
The idea is simple. Take gently-used, unwanted mattresses and bedding, sanitize and sterilize them, and distribute them to children in need. There is no application process – as long as there are beds, they go to any children that need them. For more information, visit www.sleepyheadbeds.org or call (816) 547-9965.
