By Jacob Groves

Muhlenberg Job Corps Students Partner with Rotary Club of Muhlenberg County to Assist with “Build-a-Bed” Project

Muhlenberg Job Corps CDL-B students, Jeremiah Harris, Darren Rooks, Leroy Jamison, and Daniel Scott get into the Christmas Spirit by teaming up with Rotary of Muhlenberg County to help deliver beds to Muhlenberg County Residents in the third annual “Build-a-Bed” Project.

The project began when the Rotary Club of Muhlenberg County recognized a need for some Muhlenberg County students, not having a bed to sleep in at night.  The Rotary Club believed it was an essential need to have a bed so that a student could get a good night’s sleep.  Research suggests that many teens do not get enough sleep on a nightly basis and to be at optimal performance, a teen should receive 8 to 10 hours.  Teens who do not get enough sleep are more likely to:  struggle in school; have trouble with memory, concentration, and motivation; be involved in car crashes; and feel depressed.  While having a bed might not guarantee a student gets more sleep, it is much harder to get rest if a student grows up in a poverty-stricken home without one.

This project has been a joint effort for the Rotary Club of Muhlenberg County.  It took the collaboration of the Family Resource Youth Service Centers to provide the names of students that did not have beds.  The Muhlenberg County Ag Classes assembled the beds, and the Rotary Club along with Muhlenberg Job Corps Students helped in the logistics of taking the beds to the recipients.  In the past three years, over 50 Muhlenberg County students have received a bed through this project.