A Charlotte nonprofit that helps families furnish homes
Beds for Kids is on a mission: to make sure no Charlotte family has to sleep on the floor
The following article appeared in the July 14, 2025, edition of The Charlotte Ledger, an e-newsletter with smart and original local news for Charlotte. We offer free and paid subscription plans. More info here.
Charity spotlight: Local nonprofit Beds for Kids delivers furniture and dignity to families in need
Members of the Beds for Kids team prepare for a delivery. (Photo courtesy of Beds for Kids.)
by Reid Heaton
June 24 was a typical day of deliveries for Beds for Kids. The nonprofit’s team dropped off furniture for a single mother of five who had just moved into an apartment after being homeless for a few years — and who had been sleeping on the floor.
“She was like, ‘We’ve been here for about a month, and we can’t afford furniture, and this is such a huge blessing for us.’ … She just kept saying to me, ‘I just can’t give up. I’ve got my kids, and I just can’t give up,’” said Lauren Evans, executive director of Beds for Kids.
Since 2011, Beds for Kids has served the Charlotte community as a nonprofit furniture bank. The organization has grown to 76 partner agencies that refer families who need their houses or apartments furnished.
Beds for Kids operates two warehouses that are stocked with furniture, either donated by the community or bought by the organization. MattressGrove provides mattresses and box springs at cost and donates an allotment each month. All of the furniture is given back to the community, Evans said.
A staff of 13 people is responsible for Beds for Kids’ marketing and accepting donations, organizing shelves and delivering furniture.
“We pride ourselves on delivering with dignity, making sure that these families understand that they’re important, that they matter, that they’re working hard and that they deserve all the things that they can achieve,” Evans said.
Beds for Kids has been active in Charlotte for 14 years, Evans said, and the nonprofit has experienced significant growth in the last few years. From 2022 to 2023, the nonprofit’s deliveries grew by 30%, and then from 2023 to 2024, Beds for Kids grew another 40%. This growth allowed the organization to serve 5,514 people through 1,406 deliveries in 2024.
While there is a long way to go to solve furniture poverty in Charlotte, Evans said, Beds for Kids has no intention to let up.
“We need to know furniture poverty exists,” Evans said. “I do believe it’s solvable, and I do believe we are a huge part of the nonprofit ecosystem here in Charlotte.”
Reid Heaton is an intern for The Charlotte Ledger. He recently graduated from Myers Park High School and is an incoming freshman at Washington and Lee University in Virginia.
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