Heating Up With New Kiln, the Kindness of Clean Used Bedding Grows – The Pilot

Its been two years, but the sanitizing kiln that will provide a local foundation with more mattresses for people in need of bedding is finally here. Keith Moneymaker and Amy Sexauer can barely contain their excitement.

Moneymaker, the second-generation owner of Sweet Dreams Mattresses and More in Southern Pines and Sanford, established the Dreams 4 All Foundation in 2016. Sexauer, the executive director, is a military veteran who joined the organization in the summer of 2019.

The local nonprofit has delivered new or reused/sanitized mattresses to families facing economic hardship or adversity and fire departments across the area. To date, it has assisted more than 3,000 families and organizations, including local fire stations, Habitat for Humanity of the N.C. Sandhills, Tambra Place, Bethany House, Friend to Friend, and Samaritan Colony, among others.

Moneymaker and Sexauer have also pledged to give every Ukrainian refugee arriving in North Carolina a bed. If you are operating a business in your community, the first thing you need to consider is what you are doing for that community, Moneymaker said.

While both know this is potentially an expensive pledge, they feel confident we can do it with our customers and supporters, Moneymaker said. While the mattresses will be donated, Dreams 4 All will be purchasing frames, box springs and coordinating all deliveries across the state. The nonprofit is hoping to raise $100,000 for the effort from anyone that feels called to give a dollar or a thousand or any other amount.

This new kiln does not look like the normal pottery sealer. It looks more like the back of a delivery truck covered in aluminum foil.

Keith Moneymaker (l) with Corey Lane and Amy Sexauer with her daughter inside the giant kiln at the Sweet Dreams warehouse in Aberdeen. Ted Fitzgerald/The Pilot

Regardless of appearance, it does the job. The mattress inspector, the fire inspector, the building inspector, the gas installation people and the kiln company representative all concurred on Friday.

Moneymaker hopes that this kiln will now allow his nonprofit to stockpile clean mattresses for when they are needed most.

Prior to the arrival of the kiln, Dreams 4 All was not able to provide large numbers of sanitized mattresses all at once or as quickly as needed. Sexauers team had to send the mattresses away individually for the sanitization process.

Moneymaker has shared his nonprofit model with mattress retailers, where these businesses can join Dreams 4 All as affiliate partners.

The idea is they will be able to do what Ive done here, he said. Im teaching them how to give back to their own communities.

Sexauer believes the sincerity of this nonprofit has translated to others wanting to get on board.

We have leaned into our relationships to help and ask for support, she said. Our authenticity for helping people has been obvious.

Moneymaker agrees. Ive found the more I give, the more mattresses I sell. What you give comes back tenfold. It is a beautiful, well-balanced business charity model.

Dreams 4 All has also partnered with several large mattress companies, including Tempur- Pedic, Sealy, and Stearns & Foster.

On Thursday and Friday, the first Dreams 4 All National Summit takes place with meetings, discussions and planning with the hopes that other mattress businesses across the country will participate in the process of accepting used mattresses. The guest speaker is Mike Erwin, executive director of Team RWB, a health and wellness organization focused on veterans. Afterward, attendees will participate in a large mattress delivery to Samaritan Colony in Rockingham, a nonprofit residential treatment facility helping men and soon women struggling with substance abuse problems in the Sandhills area.

Moneymaker shared what he believes is the simple secret of the success he has seen with this non-profit process. This model is better for the community and the environment, improving culture and morale, enhancing support networks, all the while building businesses.

To learn more about Dreams 4 All Foundations work in the Sandhills or to make a donation, contact Dreams4All17@gmail.com or (910) 992-6382.

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Heating Up With New Kiln, the Kindness of Clean Used Bedding Grows - The Pilot