From a university storage facility, staff load mattresses onto a semitruck for victims of summer floods in Spencer. Photos by Shelly Codner.
After severe flooding in northwest Iowa in June, many families still are recovering from damage to their home and trying to replace its contents. Among many shortages, one issue is a lack of beds, especially for children as the school year begins. Sleeping on the floor night after night isn't great for learning.
Iowa State, with assistance from the Iowa Waste Exchange and Sukup Manufacturing, became one solution to the shortage earlier this month with a donation of beds and mattresses.
Jim Ball, ISU Surplus, moves a captain bed to a truck for transport to Spencer.
So far, 72 beds and 77 mattresses have been delivered to the city of Spencer. The mattresses and captain beds -- which make use of the space between the mattress and the floor with several drawers -- were unable to be sold through ISU Surplus and would have been considered waste had an opportunity to help others not presented itself.
ISU's residence department replaces its vinyl-clad mattresses after about 10 years of use (those with tears or holes are replaced immediately and disposed of).
At two university storage facilities Aug. 16, ISU staff loaded a Sukup semi-trailer, stacking and tying down the contents for the trip north. In Spencer, local families were invited to pick up beds and mattresses from the flood relief distribution center.
Des Moines Area Community College's Transportation Institute has agreed to haul another 200 mattresses to Spencer on Sept. 9. And 80 more captain's beds also await transport in mid-September.
ISU staff from the residence department, ISU Surplus and the Live Green program worked with Shelly Codner of the Iowa Waste Exchange, who recruited Sukup to supply a truck and driver. This is not the first time Codner and Iowa State have teamed up; the partnership goes back nearly 15 years on many kinds of surplus items.
