Beds for Sleepyheads
We Need Your Help!
There’s no shortage of data that shows how great the need is. One in three Cincinnatians live below the poverty line and Cincinnati has one of the highest child poverty rates in the Country. When families overcoming homelessness, domestic abuse, extreme poverty or other devastating circumstances eat and sleep on the floor, they suffer from physical and mental illness, job insecurity and they lose hope.
To add insult to injury, there are hundreds of thousands of mattresses that end up in landfills each year across the U.S. That’s rough on the environment. It’s hard to imagine when there are so many children who could be sleeping in warm, safe beds instead of on the cold, hard floor!
YOU CAN HELP! When you donate gently-used* mattresses and other basic furniture you no longer need, we deliver it directly to the homes of families and kids in need. Mattresses are the most in-demand item because each family home we furnish requests 2 beds.
*Must be free of any stains, rips, or tears.
How You can Make a Direct and Immediate Impact
DONATE FURNITURE
Consider donating your gently used items, including:
Clean mattresses, box springs, and frames
Nightstands, dressers, small desks, chairs, end tables, coffee tables, small sofas, recliners
Table/floor lamps, trash cans, towels, linens, toiletries (unused)
Small appliances (microwaves, coffee makers, toasters), dishes, silverware, cookware, utensils
Donate Furniture Now or Get More InfoCONTRIBUTE FUNDING
Your donation helps fuel our trucks and extend our mission so that we can deliver up to 18 items of furniture including 2 beds to every family in need. We also use donations to our Sleepyheads Campaign to purchase new beds when donations of used mattresses can’t keep up with demand. Your donation of $150 will provide a brand-new bed (mattress, box spring & frame) for a child sleeping on the floor!
ContributeGET INVOLVED BY VOLUNTEERING
- Sort, organize and pack houseware donations for delivery
- Build/assemble/repair/clean furniture
- Help deliver furniture to a family in need
- Plan events, serve on a committee, join our board…and more!
ATTEND OUR EVENTS
- April 17: New Life Furniture Bank Open House 5-7pm – see our new facility!
- June 20: Summer Solstice Celebration, Golden Chair Awards & Fundraiser
- November 9: Party in the House Gala, Design Challenge & Fundraiser
Keep an eye on our Home Page for more info registration links!
More Information as printed in the March 2019 Sophisticated Giving Cincinnati Charity Register
Who We Are: New Life Furniture Bank is a faith-based non-profit located in Blue Ash, Ohio, serving the Greater Cincinnati area. The region’s only nationally-registered furniture bank, we collect gently used furniture (mattresses/beds, dressers, tables, chairs, sofas, lamps) from people who have extra, inspect and clean it, and deliver the items directly to the homes of families in extreme need. Originally a small ministry of Milford First United Methodist Church founded in 2006, the organization gained 501(C)3 status in 2009. Nearly 10 years later, New Life Furniture Bank partners with over 30 social service agencies to help end the cycle of homelessness.
What We Do: A “furniture bank” works a lot like a food bank – only instead of food, we collect donations of gently-used furniture and provide to those in need. We deliver up to 18 items, furnishing empty houses of individuals and families overcoming homelessness, escaping domestic abuse, aging out of foster care, or rebuilding after disasters, and extreme poverty. This restores dignity, brings pride of ownership, adds confidence, and allows people to stabilize while working towards self-sufficiency. We get children sleeping on floors into warm, safe beds. For those who have lost everything or have nothing, we turn empty houses into homes.
Why We’re Important: Imagine your children sleeping and eating on cold, bare floors day after day and night after night. This is the harsh reality for thousands of low-income families escaping poverty in Greater Cincinnati. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Cincinnati’s child poverty rate is one of the highest in the nation, and the city is consistently ranked in the top poorest cities in our country with a poverty rate almost twice the state’s average. Our goal is for all Cincinnati families to live in furnished homes, thereby relieving suffering, strengthening family units, improving quality of life, and building a better community.
How We Serve the Community: We believe in the healing power of giving and receiving to empower communities to come together and support our most vulnerable populations. In 2018, we conducted 1,467 pickups and delivered 11,029 pieces of furniture to 737 households consisting of 1,875 individuals. Of these, 57% were children under the age of 18. The families we serve are the “poorest of the poor”: 81% reported earning less than $12,000 annually. Also, when you donate, you are not only helping people in need, you are recycling and helping prevent more than 10,000 items that we collect each year from ending up in landfills.
Special Thanks to the Rug Gallery for generously sponsoring the New Life Furniture Bank feature in Sophisticated Living Magazine’s Sophisticated Giving Register.
