Sleep in Heavenly Peace PA-Lock Haven - Core team leader.

My involvement

As a core team leader with Sleep in Heavenly Peace PA-Lock Haven, I help prepare and run public bed builds for children who do not have beds of their own.

My work includes setting up saws, drills, sanding and staining stations, organizing the build floor, moving material between stations, and coaching volunteers. Many people arrive with little or no tool experience, so clear instructions and safe setup matter just as much as speed.

How a build works

A build runs like a volunteer assembly line. Teams measure and cut lumber, drill the pieces, sand every surface, apply stain, brand the rails, and assemble the bed components. Experienced volunteers lead each station and teach first-time builders how to do the work safely.

The work continues after build day. Volunteers match completed frames with new twin mattresses, sheets, pillows, and bedding, then deliver and install the beds in children's homes.

My service record

On October 11, 2025, Bobie-Jo Brungard and I joined an SHP delivery crew for three hours. We made seven stops, delivered and set up 11 beds, and took apart one existing bed for a family that was moving. At one stop, a neighbor walked over and donated $200 to the chapter after seeing the crew at work.

I returned for a public build at SA Piper Logistics on November 15. It was my fifth SHP bed build. I helped my Leadership Clinton County teammates sign in and choose stations, then worked as a floater across sanding, cleanup, teardown, and hardware packing. A lunch conversation with chapter president Laura Orndorf about the need for twin bedding led directly to our team's holiday bedding drive.

I led that drive from November 28 through December 24, 2025. Our four-person Leadership Clinton County team collected 92 new bedding items worth $2,030 and another $120 in cash donations. The three campaign posts were shared more than 200 times, and we delivered everything to Great Island Presbyterian Church for SHP to distribute with future beds.

On February 28, 2026, I volunteered for another two and a half hours at a large public build. I worked first on the sticker and staple station, then moved to the cutting line to keep lumber moving to the right stations.

The local chapter

The PA-Lock Haven chapter serves Clinton, Lycoming, and Centre counties, including families in the Keystone Central, Jersey Shore, and Bellefonte school districts. It holds public builds as well as private sponsor-led builds and accepts new twin-size bedding through local drop-off locations.

The chapter was established locally in 2022. Local reporting documented its 200th bed delivery in July 2024 and more than 400 beds built and delivered by December 2025.