By Andy Peterson
CORVALLIS — One man’s discarded couch could mean a
place to sleep for another man, now a local group is bringing those two folks together.
“A lot of people don’t realize the needs, because it’s a pretty strong and relatively wealthy community, with HP, the university, and all this,” explains volunteer George Keller. “But there are a great number of people that can use a helping hand.”
That’s where Benton Furniture Share comes in. The small non-profit organization collects unwanted furniture and redistributes it to those in need.
Friday they were on campus at OSU to collect donations from students leaving for the winter.
“Our number one requested item is the dresser, and we don’t get as many in as the demand,” says BFS’s Emily Steadman. “Next would be couches and kitchen tables.”
Benton Furniture Share is run out of a small office in a delivery company along Highway 99, and with just a couple of employees and a shoestring budget, they say they rely heavily on volunteers to help them help others.
“It’s not that hard,” says volunteer Stanley Taylor. “You pick up, lift a few things. I’ve had hard jobs, this is not a hard job.”
“You can tell if it makes a difference,” Keller explains. “You can see if you don’t have anything, and someone walks in and says ‘now you don’t have to sleep on the floor, we got a bed for you’.”
“We’d like to eventually have a delivery truck,” Steadman notes, “and be able to deliver our furniture not just in Corvallis but in outlying areas, and do that more than two days a week” as they currently are operating.
But despite their challenges, organizers say that every little bit helps.
“We just don’t appreciate what these people are going without,” Keller says. “And a little bit makes a huge difference.”
Besides those big-ticket items, Benton Furniture Share also has a need for small appliances like toasters and microwaves.
The organization will be collecting items this Saturday, December 9th. If you’d like to help out with donations, or as a volunteer, you can learn more on our web site by clicking on “News Links”. You can also call them at 541-754-9511.
