This story will appear in the April print issue of Anglican Life, written by Maureen Lymburner. Photos provided by Home Again Furniture Bank.
Last April, members of the Archdeaconry of Avalon chose to give up the comfort of their beds to share an evening on the floor of the Anglican Cathedral of St. John the Baptist. Their sacrifice demonstrated compassion for those who live without basic furnishings each day and night, and has inspired members of other faith communities to participate in Home Again Furniture Bank’s Heads Without Beds campaign.
Heads Without Beds aims to raise awareness, and funds, to end furniture poverty on the northeast Avalon. In seeking sponsors to sleep without a bed for one night, participants are helping to ensure that others will not have to suffer that same discomfort and indignity.
Leaders and laity of multiple faith communities have elected to join together and sleep without a bed on April 17th. Multi-faith participation in Heads Without Beds exemplifies the underlying commonalities of differing religious expressions. Each religious tradition abides by a variation of the Golden Rule to “do unto others as you would have them do unto you” (Matthew 7:12), as seen in the many selfless acts of service and care for society’s most vulnerable.
Participation in the St. John’s and Area Council of Churches, the Religious Social Action Coalition NL, and now in the Heads Without Beds campaign, demonstrates an active commitment by local faith communities to find ways to thrive together, work toward common goals, and advocate for vulnerable populations in a combined community of care.
Home Again Furniture Bank’s initiative Heads Without Beds is a great way to continue the deepening of multi-faith dialogue and action, for the betterment of community.
About Home Again Furniture Bank
Home Again is a nonprofit organization that aims to end regional furniture poverty. To do this, Home Again collects donations of gently-used furniture to redistribute, for free, to those referred by partner agencies and organizations. Each week our volunteers deliver beds, blankets, pillows, sofas and more to individuals and families who had been living without.
As partners of Home Again, each Anglican parish in the region can refer parishioners and others in their communities who find themselves without basic furnishings.
Past furniture recipients have shared “I can have a seat in my own house now because I have a table and chairs and cups to serve coffee. I also have a bed now so I don’t have to sleep on the floor anymore.” Another recipient said, “The mattress allows me to sleep better. The dresser helped me organize my clothes. The lamp allows my son to sleep with the light on.”
Less than 4.5 years old, Home Again has furnished more than 1300 households. And there is an ever-growing list of more than 150 households waiting for the furniture they need to turn their house into a home.
You Can Help
You can help ensure that others have a bed to sleep in by supporting Heads Without Beds. Ask questions and learn more about the work of Home Again Furniture Bank. Sponsor a Heads Without Beds participant by making a tax-deductible financial contribution. Participating churches will have specially marked envelopes. Some participants will use sponsor donation sheets. Or donations can be made online at: https://bit.ly/2k2FX4n
For more information:
www.homeagainfb.ca
Maureen Lymburner
(709) 325-0072
