Omaha, Neb. – On Friday, July 12, 2024, Supportworks partnered with Sleep in Heavenly Peace (SHP), a non-profit dedicated to delivering hand-made, fully furnished beds to children in need, for a National Supportworks Build Day. The goal was to build as many beds as possible in one eight-hour day and help SHP live up to its motto: "No kid sleeps on the floor in our town!"
Along with Thrasher Foundation Repair here in Omaha, the Supportworks team built 150 beds for the cause.
Most of us take it for granted that we'll sleep in a bed tonight. That especially goes for our children. But did you know that child bedlessness is a national crisis that causes serious issues in kids, including hyperactivity, anxiety and depression, in addition to an overall worsening of health? It's true; many children across America sleep on floors, couches or wherever they can lay their heads every night. And that can have severe, cascading effects on their lives as they grow into adulthood.
When we found this out, we knew we had to do something. One Community is a core value at Supportworks. More than advocating for our community and returning the blessings we've been given, it's also a recognition that we don't just work here — we live here, too. And that means that doing good in our community helps us all. Plus, with our background in construction, it was a no-brainer for us to put our hands to work to do our part.
But we didn't stop there. Rather than confining our build day to just one location, we called upon our entire Foundation Supportworks Dealer Network to get other contractors to join the event. The idea was rolled out to the Network at Supportworks' annual Redefine Conference in April 2024, when Jon Erbst, Vice President of Foundation Supportworks, announced the partnership with SHP from the main stage.
The response was overwhelmingly positive; more than 30 dealer locations joined the cause.
And, a few months later, on a Friday in mid-July, teams across the country gathered to measure, cut, sand, drill and assemble beds using tools, materials and PPE provided by their local SHP chapters.
SHP has years of experience hosting build days such as these and organized everything so that each team ran like a well-oiled machine after just a few minutes of direction from the organization's onsite volunteers.
For Jon Erbst, the event was a resounding success. "We, along with our friends at Thrasher here in Omaha, hit our goal of making 150 fully furnished beds over the course of the day, and our dealers made many more than that," he says proudly, adding, "It was really gratifying to see everyone working together to build beds for kids — especially folks who are normally more at home working on a laptop than using a drill press or orbital sander."
The event's success was repeated at Foundation Supportworks dealer locations nationwide, resulting in more than 900 ready-to-use beds built for kids in need thus far. Several dealers will extend their efforts into the coming weeks, resulting in more than 1,000 beds being produced by the Network this year!
SHP Founder Luke Mickelson appreciates that companies are willing to support their mission to end child bedlessness: "It's always amazing and inspiring to partner with companies like Supportworks that have made it their goal to help provide as many beds as they can for children all across the country."
To arrange a build day in your area or to help SHP with its mission, you can visit their website, SHPBeds.org.
About Supportworks
Headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, Supportworks was founded in 2008 by Greg Thrasher, the owner of a successful home services company that was looking to vertically integrate and become a supplier focused on redefining an entire industry. In addition to developing industry-leading solutions, the company provides tools, software and business coaching to more than 150 contractors across North America. The company is also proud to be Certified Evergreen by the Tugboat Institute, an Idaho-based entrepreneurial think tank dedicated to supporting companies they believe have what it takes to grow and thrive for 100 years or more. To inquire about becoming a member of the Foundation Supportworks dealer network, visit becomeadealer.supportworks.com. For a list of open positions, go to careers.supportworks.com.
About Sleep in Heavenly Peace
Sleep in Heavenly Peace (SHP) started, like many other charities, in a garage. It was the Christmas season, a time of joy and happiness, a time of giving and love, but also a time of bitter, cold weather and snowstorms. A project that began with building one bed for a family in need developed into something much more. With the wood left over from the first bunk, another was created. Someone asked, "Who else could benefit from this bunk?" and SHP was born. SHP is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization.