Their motto is "There are no children in our town sleeping on the floor", and their goal is to build 20 bunk beds for children in the Waupaka area.

On Saturday, November 12, 25 volunteers gathered at Furniture N Creations at E4355 East Gate Drive and spent the morning polishing, drilling, fastening and dyeing wooden bed frames.

Sleep in Heavenly Peace is a national non-profit organization with chapters all over the country.

“This is the only charity that provides handmade beds for children who don’t have their own beds,” said Amanda Rasmussen, owner of Furniture N Creations.

This is the first community building of the Waupaka branch. "Building Day" refers to a group of volunteers gathering together to make beds.

The wood was donated by Drexel Building Supply. Noffke Lumber also donated wood and buckets for dyeing solutions. Furniture N Creations provided tools and workspaces.

Rasmussen is watching Mike Rowe, the host of the TV show "Dirty Work." He did a part about non-profit organizations and slept in heaven.

Rasmussen thought it would be great to do this in Waupaka, but she didn't have the space. Her just-started custom furniture business is still in its infancy.

She put it behind her head, but remembered it again when the Green Bay branch started. At this time, after she moved the woodworking business to the new workshop on Dongmen Avenue, there was room to do this.

She went to Sleep in Heavenly Peace headquarters in Idaho for a few days of training, and then built some test benches with a core group of volunteers to develop the first community building process.

Each bed is equipped with a mattress, pillows, sheets and quilt. In an empty room next to the Furniture N Creations showroom, there is a small pile of bedding from local donors. The club cooperated with Waupaka Mattress Company to help purchase mattress donations.

Julie Coenen uses an orbital grinder to polish the frame at Furniture N Creations. These beds will be provided to children in need in the Waupaka area. James Card Photos

All the beds are built from scratch and the design is simple and clear, so volunteers with no previous carpentry experience can easily roll up their sleeves.

In the Furniture N Creations workshop, workstations are set up, and volunteers can try to dye, polish, cut or drill various components.

Children of all ages are welcome to help with adult volunteers.

"We have other things to do, such as sorting out bolts and washers, and thank you cards that need to be written. Everyone has a job," Rasmussen said.

Outside the back door was a fire pit, and Chloe Gregory took out a hot red soldering iron. She pressed it into the pine headboard, and the wood smoked.

A few seconds later, she picked up the iron, and the non-profit organization's logo SHP was charred into the wood.

From there, the headboard was passed to volunteer Tina Demotts from the Fond du Lac chapter. She is looking after the dyeing station. A large jar contained a dark brown liquid composed of vinegar and steel wool.

After two weeks of aging, vinegar will decompose steel wool. This oxidizing solution gives the wood a weathered luster. She dunks on the headboard.

"Vinegar can also prevent bed bugs," Demotz said.

Behind Demotts is a row of headboards, dried in the sun, slowly revealing new colors.

Twenty bunk beds are under construction, but may also be equivalent to 40 single beds. The beds are designed so that they can be stacked as bunk beds or used as individual single beds.

You can apply for beds on shpbeds.org for children aged 3-17 who live within 30 miles of Waupaca. Parents or legal guardians must sign a disclaimer and provide contact information to verify and set up delivery.

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