Sabres, Trusted Nurse Staffing, and Sleep in Heavenly Peace come together to build beds for children in need

Rick and Betsy DiVita were overcome with emotions when they realized over 10,000 children in the City of Buffalo were sleeping without a bed or in less-than-desirable sleeping conditions.

Determined to find a solution, they decided to get involved with Sleep in Heavenly Peace (SHP), a national charitable organization with over 330 chapters across the U.S. that builds and delivers beds to kids in need, at no cost to families.

The DiVitas wanted to ensure that children in Buffalo did not have to sleep on the floor or share a bed with other siblings, so they co-founded the Buffalo chapter of SHP in 2019 to give kids in underserved communities a safe and comfortable place to sleep at night.

"Many times you hear about needs for food and clothing, but really when you think about the need for a good night’s sleep and for children to have beds, it’s really important," Betsy DiVita said. "So, that really motivated us to kind of get involved with the organization."

Since then, donations from area businesses, organizations, and individuals have provided tools and materials for volunteers to build over 3,700 beds in Buffalo for children in need of a sturdy and safe place to sleep.

The Sabres teamed up with partner Trusted Nurse Staffing and Sleep in Heavenly Peace on Tuesday to host a bed-building event to benefit and bring awareness to the work SHP does in the community.

Staff members from SHP, Trusted Nurse Staffing, and the Sabres broadcast team, including Brian Duff, Marty Biron, and Dan Dunleavy, gathered together at KeyBank Center to build beds for children in the area.

"Joining forces with Sleep in Heavenly Peace and the Buffalo Sabres for today's bed-building event has been an inspiring demonstration of what we can achieve together,” said Martin Vidal, CEO of Trusted Nurse Staffing. “At Trusted Nurse Staffing, our heart lies in community giveback, and this partnership embodies our dedication to making a tangible difference. I am deeply proud and look forward to furthering our impact."

As longtime Sabres fans and season ticket holders, the DiVitas were grateful for the opportunity to bring awareness to their initiative through their hometown team and Trusted Nurse Staffing, who has partnered with SHP for several years.

The DiVitas shared touching stories with the volunteers to help them understand the impact they are having on the community.

Dunleavy was especially touched by the initiative and is planning on joining SHP’s dedicated group of volunteers, the “Blue Shirts,” to continue to build and deliver beds in the future.

“I’m going to imagine most people in this area had no idea how many kids don’t have a bed to sleep in, which speaks a lot for the Sabres organization bringing awareness to this issue,” he said. “I think just the outreach in the community – even as employees – that we’re able to continuously learn about these needs that are in the community. And this one really struck a chord with me, and I think it should with a lot of people. Growing up, I never thought that I would need a bed from someone else. And to know that that’s still such a need in this part of our world that we live in really struck a chord with me, to the point where I am going to volunteer over the summer and I’m going to help these people build beds.”

SHP’s Buffalo chapter started out as a small, core group of volunteers and has since grown into a community of hundreds of people who have offered their time and support to help serve children in Buffalo.

Tuesday’s bed-building event also coincided with the conclusion of JJ’s Jammie Drive, presented by Trusted Nurse Staffing. The Sabres, JJ Peterka, and Trusted Nurse Staffing teamed up for the new campaign this season, which allowed fans to donate new or like-new pajamas or make a $20 donation to purchase pajamas for a local child in need.

Over 220 sets of pajamas were collected and then donated to OLV Charities for children in emergency foster care, their preventive services program, and more.

"The success of JJ's Jammie Drive, in collaboration with our partners at the Sabres and the heartfelt support from the community, has filled us with immense pride,” Vidal said. “At Trusted Nurse Staffing, we are honored to facilitate such meaningful efforts alongside OLV Charities and are deeply grateful for the community's generosity. This drive exemplifies our shared commitment to nurturing the well-being of our community's most vulnerable. I am tremendously proud of what we have achieved together and inspired by the continued dedication to making a difference in the lives of others."

To learn more about how you can help children in need in Buffalo, visit these organizations: https://shpbeds.org/chapter/ny-buffalo/, https://www.olvcharities.org/, and https://trustedgives.org/.