CINCINNATI — It will be sweet dreams tonight for dozens of kids in the Tri-State.
WCPO 9 partnered with St. Vincent de Paul and Morris Home Furniture to give 50 kids new beds of their own for the annual Hope to Dream event.
For the Corona family, a bed for their youngest child is an answered prayer.
“We used to sleep on the floor, so just to see something like this it’s a blessing,” Jessica Corona said.
Juan Corona also said it was a blessing.
“We’ve been struggling. We’re from Texas. We’ve barely been here for two years,” Juan Corona said.
Juan said it’s been hard for the family to keep up with their bills, buy gas and purchase groceries. Because of this, a bed for their youngest wasn’t at the top of the list.
“There are a lot of people in our community who don’t have their own bed,” said St. Vincent de Paul Marketing Manager Kristen Gallagher.
Gallagher said they see kids sleeping without a bed all the time.
“This is something at St. Vincent de Paul we see when we do home visits with families. There are a lot of children unfortunately when we go into the homes who may be sleeping on the floor on blankets, they’ve pulled cushions off the couch and may be sleeping on the floor or even just multiple children sharing beds or children and parents sharing beds,” Gallagher said.
From that concern Hope to Dream was born. The event, which is celebrating its seventh year, provides free beds from Morris Home Furniture to children who don’t have one.
Each bed came with a box spring, a stuffed animal, a backpack filled with school supplies, and bedding.
“We know that there are kids in need and we sell furniture to people who are fortunate to purchase those, but we also understand there are people who are not fortunate enough to purchase mattresses,” said Morris Home Furniture Regional Sales Director Joshua Thorpe.
For Thorpe, this event is close to his heart.
“I remember not having a bed to sleep on with five siblings (and) a single mother, so when I’m able to give back like this and see the community band together for those families that are in need it really does hit home for me,” he said.
Thorpe said with every purchase, the company donates part of the sale as a way to give back to the community.
St. Vincent de Paul provides beds to those in need year-round through the nonprofit's bed program. In 2023, St. Vincent de Paul has provided beds to 600 children and 1,200 people overall — with each bed costing $175 to provide. To learn more about St. Vincent de Paul's bed program, you can call 513-421-0602.
On August 23, WCPO will also be hosting a telethon from 4-7 p.m. to help St. Vincent de Paul provide more beds for children in need.
