There’s no charity like American charity: voluntary, local and deeply PERSONAL. Bill Whittle brings us a look at an organization that gives as much to its donors as it does to its recipients.
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April 19, 2026
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I thought Bill mentioned that the organization’s website says there are 153,000 kids wanting beds. I just went to the website and it is now just over 140,000.
So this organization is doing good work and many are still helping.
What ACTS (TM) said, and what Karl said. I agree with both. And, I’ve been around long enough to recall, Veteran’s Airlift Command – Walt Fricke, Sgt. Mike Schlitz, and Welfare Square, and the volunteer teen musicians called Moore Four, some folks Bill Whittle introduced us to over a decade ago. Once again, Bill introduces us to another group that’s making a difference, SHP. Fitting that Bill was the one to present this episode. The original Afterburner from PJTV was called (I think) A Tale of 2 Americas. It’s gotta be buried in the Salem Media vault somewhere. I was… Read more »
I’m in your position and have had a good introduction to charity work (not career related) through Rotary. Our chapter has financed a free dental clinic (our community has a lot of retired dentists), has financed part of a Women’s halfway house (small towns and drug addiction is a thing), and is looking into an after school place for kids whose parents both work (Boys and Girls Clubs are prohibitively expensive). Not retiring soon, but can do a bunch even outside of working hours. We help distribute food to the poor with the Food Bank and local churches, do clean-up… Read more »
I did a decade with Lions.
This is a great idea for community bonding and all that kind of thing, and is no doubt a worthy cause so I’m not trying to rain on anyone’s parade here but … A serviceable metal twin sized bed frame/stand is only about $30 on “sale”. It’s strong, lightweight, easy to collapse and move … Ideal for a poor family that may have to move regularly/often for various reasons. The mattress is a different matter but you can’t really get a bunch of people together and build those. The total cost would equal about 1/2-3/4 an hour of my professionally… Read more »
An easily portable, inexpensive, bed probably would be a better option for some of these families, but I suspect the main point of the charity is closer to what Scott said. The sense of community, of someone saying “we are here, we see you you, we care” though I would personally wonder about the distribution of need and people able to provide not overlapping very well.
I think the beds this organization is making might be easier to move than a store-bought metal bed. I say this because is looks like the carry all the pieces easily in to the kid’s bedroom and assemble on the spot. And it looks like with a tool or two, it could be disassembled for a move. Conversely, like the metal bed we ended up with, it is not easy to or possible to disassemble for moving, so it might make it more difficult to move. The mattress and box springs will always be a pain to move, so that’s… Read more »
That would save me and my OCD. I’d be there sanding, staining, and personalizing the wooden beds.
“If a job is worth doing, it’s worth doing well.”