No experience necessary

1/3/2024

West Des Moines resident Dan Buscher, part owner of Integrity Printing, isn’t a carpenter or bed builder by trade, but he certainly became one. 

His wife and three daughters had been involved with Sleep in Heavenly Peace (SHP), a charity organization that helps provide those in need with their own beds. Members of the organization build the frames, provide mattresses, mattress cover, pillows and pillowcases, and deliver it all right to the recipients’ homes.

Buscher got started with the organization nearly three years ago, thanks to his family’s recommendation.

“I thought, OK, I’ll do this if it’s administrative work or if it’s whatever on the side. I never thought I’d get into the actual building, but that kind of changed. They said they were all good (on the administrative end), so I just started working from there, going down there once a month. I started with cutting the wood, sanding it, drilling it and putting it together. It just kind of escalated from there,” said Buscher.

Buscher says the Des Moines chapter of Sleep in Heavenly Peace has delivered more than 500 beds in 2023 and estimates they will get close to 600 by the end of the year, which is a steep increase from his first year when they delivered about 200 beds.

Applications for beds typically come from school counselors or teachers recommending this resource to families.

When asked if any family or individual has stood out to Buscher during his time providing beds, he said all of them are touching, but he highlighted a child.

“There was a 15-year-old boy — and 15-year-old boys don’t give a lot of people the time of day — so, we went into their place, we built the bed, put the mattress on, and we’re going to put the sheets on and the mattress pad and all that stuff. And he was just like, ‘I can do this. I will take care of this.’ After sleeping on a loveseat and being a taller kid, he was all for it, just very appreciative manners. It was one of those things where he could have kind of snubbed us and just let us do our stuff, but he took it upon himself to take the initiative to help us and to make sure he was part of it. That’s the part where it just gets me,” said Buscher.

Buscher described another instance when a week before this interview took place, he helped deliver a bed to a dad and his 4-year-old daughter. The family had no other furniture in their home besides the bed they were providing at that moment. Before they could even put the comforter on, the daughter was already in the bed, as happy as could be. 

“There’s endless stories like that, and it just makes you feel good,” said Buscher.

According to numbers from SHP, between 2-3% of children in the U.S. are without a bed. Poor sleep can lead to numerous problems for children, including hyperactivity, anxiety and depression, while children who are experiencing better sleep grow better, are healthier and perform better in school.

“You hear that they don’t have food, or they don’t have a coat. You don’t think about the bed. We’re able to give them the beds and give them that comfort. It’s like they get a start,” said Buscher.

Out of the more than 500 beds that SHP has been able to provide to the community this year, Buscher estimates he’s had a hand in more than 100 of them. They have several teams inside the organization that work to get together for deliveries, as well as the building of the beds. And they’re ready to welcome more.

“There’s no experience necessary. It’s pretty much foolproof. It’s hard to mess it up. If you mess it up, you’re not paying attention at all. Anybody can do it, because a lot of people say, ‘I’ve never used the power tool.’ It doesn’t matter. We’re going to show you,” said Buscher. ♦