GREENSBORO, N.C. — Sitting on a nice recliner or sofa or sitting at a dining table may be something you don't think twice about.
For some families in the Piedmont Triad, furniture is a luxury some do not have.
A local nonprofit organization is hoping to change that by fighting furniture poverty.
What is furniture poverty?
According to FurnitureBank.org, Furniture poverty is when someone doesn’t have the means to buy a bed, or a table, or a couch, or other home essentials to make a house a home.
Furniture poverty has devastating effects on a person's mental and physical health, and often results in people returning to crisis.
"Here in North Carolina, it's estimated to cost about $3,500 and $5,000 just to outfit a two-bedroom apartment with the basics. We're talking beds, couches, living room furniture, bath, bed, kitchen utensils, just livable it's about $5,000 and that's going up with the cost of living going up. So, for someone who has just done the hard work say transitioning from or out of homelessness that is an insurmountable amount of money and that's where a furniture bank comes in," Judy Caldwell, Marketing and Director of Development at The Barnabas Network.
The Barnabas Network was created in 2006. Today, Barnabas is the Triad's only nonprofit furniture bank and remains focused on eliminating furniture poverty in North Carolina. In an average year, the network collects more than 8,000 pieces of furniture and distributes furniture to about 900 households in the Triad. It is the Triad’s only nonprofit furniture bank and one of only about 80 nationwide providing furniture to families in need.
"We are here to give folks these items at no charge, and we do it by partnering with about 150 local agencies schools other nonprofits who are our eyes and ears on the grounds they help us identify and quantify the need for furniture," Caldwell said.
The Network receives furniture from donors in the community as well as from 150 local agencies. Three of their top agencies include Guilford County Schools, Church World Services, and The Servant Center in Greensboro.
You can donate your gently used furniture to Barnabas as well as workers from The Barnabas Network will come pick up your items for free.
The Barnabas Network is in need of your gently used beds and mattresses.
To donate or to learn more, click or tap HERE.
The warehouse is located at 838 Winston Street in Greensboro and is open Monday through Friday from 8 in the morning until 2 in the afternoon.
The Barnabas Network will soon be expanding to its first warehouse in High Point. It is still in the planning stages of finding a location for the warehouse.
Coming up in April, the network will hold its online Spring Auction. The weeklong shopping experience features 500+ high-end new and like-new pieces donated by local retailers and manufacturers. You get a chance to win a treasure for your home while helping fund our ability to furnish other homes in our community. Bidding starts Friday, April 19 at 8 p.m. and ends Saturday, April 27 at 8 p.m. To register to bid, click or tap HERE.