Georgetown CRC Builds Beds for Local Families

In spring 2023, Georgetown Christian Reformed Church was inspired by another local organization to begin a new ministry: bed building.

The Hudsonville, Mich., church had a small shed on the edge of its property. Once filled with junk and dust, the space was soon transformed into a bright, clean, high-quality workshop where volunteers could use their skills to serve local families.

“It started as a simple desire to ensure that every child in our community has a safe and comfortable place to sleep,” said Amy Koetsier, director of community relationships at Georgetown CRC.

But the ministry grew from more than a desire to build beds. It began with the church recognizing a need in its surrounding community.

“It really began with God opening our eyes to a need that was hiding in plain sight,” Koetsier said.

Georgetown CRC had signed up for CarePortal, a platform that connects local churches and community responders with families and individuals facing crises, and the church soon began receiving requests for beds from local families.

Today the bed-building ministry engages volunteers from both the church and the broader community. Through referrals from schools, social workers, foster-care agencies, churches, CarePortal, and other community partners, the Georgetown CRC volunteers build and deliver beds, mattresses, and bedding to children who would otherwise be sleeping on the floor.

The beds are constructed in the church’s campus woodshop, where volunteers cut, sand, assemble, and stain sturdy wooden beds. The beds can be used individually or stacked as bunk beds, and each child who receives a bed also receives a brand-new mattress and bedding, including sheets, blankets, and pillows.

Every bed is provided free of charge to families in need and to foster families preparing to welcome a child.

For her part, said Koetsier, the ministry has also provided an opportunity to bring her own skills into service. She previously worked as a handywoman and now helps to lead a team of dedicated volunteers, including Bruce, Ken, and Arlan, all members of Georgetown CRC.

The most recent round of beds, she said, was completed in the workshop during the first week of August.

As the ministry has grown, so has the way volunteers work together. When the group first started building beds, Koetsier said, 10 to 12 volunteers would gather for an evening and attempt to complete every stage of the process at once. But they quickly discovered that perhaps a different approach was needed.

Now the work is divided into separate stages over two evenings. The first evening is dedicated to cutting lumber to length and routing the edges, and then the next evening focuses on staining, assembling, and finishing the beds.

For Bruce, one of the ministry’s volunteers, the most meaningful part comes after the work in the woodshop is finished. He often helps to deliver the beds to families.

“I get to meet some of the people who need these beds,” he said. “When you deliver a bed,” he explained, the young kids often “want to help you carry stuff in, and if they're old enough, we'll let them run a drill” to help with the final assembly, “and, you know, it's just—that's the best part.”

The ministry’s impact also extends beyond the families receiving beds, added Koetsier. It has created opportunities for people within and outside the congregation to meet and build relationships and discover new ways to serve together.

“I would never have known this guy was here if it weren't for this,” one volunteer said, describing how the ministry brought him and a local neighbor together when they might not otherwise have crossed paths.

For Koetsier, the ministry has become a true team effort.

“If it weren't for these guys, you know, this wouldn't be possible,” she said. “So I might have a vision, but they have the ability to see it through.”

The team chuckled at her response, joking that they help take the “rough edges” off her ideas.

That sense of camaraderie, and the willingness of people to contribute their time, skills, and resources, said Koetsier, is what continues to make the Georgetown CRC bed-building ministry possible.

Koetsier noted that the work carries a deeper significance as well. “I think it's so cool that we get to walk a little bit in the Lord’s footsteps in this way,” she said.

What began with a need that was “hiding in plain sight” has become more than a ministry that builds beds. It has become a place where people can use their gifts, meet their neighbors, and work together to make sure a child has a safe place to sleep.

What’s happening in your church?

We know that Georgetown CRC isn’t the only church finding creative ways to serve its community. Across our denomination, churches are dreaming up ministries, trying out new ideas, and responding to needs right in their own neighborhoods.

We want to learn from you too. If your church has a ministry or outreach initiative that’s making a difference, please tell us about it. By sharing what’s happening in our local contexts, we can learn from one another, spark new ideas, and foster a community where churches don’t have to figure things out alone.

Have a ministry story to share? We’d love to hear about it. Let us know at [email protected].