Wasilla Lowe’s partnering with Sleep in Heavenly Peace to build beds for local children

WASILLA — Wasilla Lowe’s is back with Sleep in Heavenly Peace for their second bed building marathon scheduled from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Amazing Grace Academy Sunday.

Volunteers from across the Valley will once again band together to build as many beds as they can in a day to distribute to local children in need.

“If you want to see a kid smile, that’s what drives me really, just to give back really,” Wasilla Lowe’s assistant store manager Peter Bray said. “Lowes is part of the community, and it’s our thing to give back to the community.”

According to Bray, the Lowe’s Heroes Program is back in swing nationwide, so stores across the country are finding ways to support nonprofits in their respective communities. Wasilla employees agreed to support Sleep in Heavenly Peace this year as a part of the Heroes Program.

“We’re so lucky to have a bed,” Bray said. “We’re building beds for children, which is good.”

Bray said they built 51 beds last year, but lumber is limited this time around. He said they plan to build as many beds as they can with the help of Lowe’s staff, and volunteers from the community, including students from the Amazing Grace Academy.

Lowe’s partnered with Mattress Ranch who will be providing mattresses and other bedding materials for this project. Lowe’s is providing all the onsite bed construction training in addition to the tools and materials needed for the job.

Bray said they built 10 beds with some Academy teens to show them what the project is going to be like. He said the students received an offer to not wear their uniforms for a period of time in exchange for their labor.

“We are willing to give back to the community,” Bray said. We stayed open during the pandemic. We were lucky to be one of the essential services.”

The support doesn’t stop there. Bray said the Lowe’s corporate office awarded $10,000 to every Sleep in Heavenly Peace chapter in the country. The program can always use help getting more beds for more kids in need.

“It takes money to build beds,” Bray said.

To volunteer for this project, visit shpbeds.org for waivers and more information.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman reporter Jacob Mann at jacob.mann@frontiersman.com