CLEVELAND (WJW) – One Lorain County man’s mission to provide kids with a good place to sleep is becoming a movement.
Roger Dorsey is the president and founder of the Good Knights of Lorain County. He started the nonprofit in 2018 motivated by his upbringing, where he grew up without a good place to sleep.
“I just think back to myself. When I was a kid, if I would’ve had somebody knock on the door and say, ‘Hey, we got a bed for you, kid. We got a set of bunk beds for you.’ What a huge impact that would have made in my life,” Dorsey said.
He and his volunteers have provided more than 3,000 beds for kids in Lorain County. Now, the Good Knights are expanding their reach to Cuyahoga County, building 104 beds for kids in Cleveland.
The materials for the outreach effort were purchased and provided by Holcim, Lafarge and several other partner businesses, who raised $30,000 for the project.
“More importantly, we’re donating our time,” Holcim General Manager Scott Plourde said. “Over the couple days, we’ll have north of 100 volunteers, delivering just over 100 beds to kids locally in Cleveland.”
Dorsey estimates 10,000 to 12,000 kids in Cleveland live without proper bedding.
“We’re not going to end ‘child bedlessness,’ but I can take you back and show you the names of 3,200 kids in Lorain County that have ended that,” Dorsey said. “Tomorrow night, there will be 104 kids at Carver Park in Outhwaite that will be in their own beds. Many of them for the first time.”
The Good Knights are asking for volunteers to help deliver the beds. If you are interested in helping, you can show up at the intersection of 43rd Street and Quincy Avenue at 10 a.m.
More information can be found through the Good Knights Facebook page.