THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, July 20, 1995 TAG: 9507180116
SECTION: NORFOLK COMPASS PAGE: 05 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY SCOTT McCASKEY, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 56 lines
A number of homeless and the underprivileged people in Norfolk will be sleeping easier thanks to a mattress company.
On July 13, four tractor-trailers delivered $25,000 worth of new bedding to five Norfolk charities. The mattresses were donated by Dial-A-Mattress, which delivers bedding via an 800 telephone number.
The Dwelling Place, a shelter for homeless families in the Park Place community, was the first delivery stop. The facility was given 32 mattresses.
``This is a fabulous donation,'' said Trish Manthey, executive director of the Dwelling Place. ``I can't think of a better way for a company to announce itself to the public.''
Dial-A-Mattress plans to open a marketing center and warehouse in Norfolk by late November.
``We like to help the shelters as often as we can,'' said Adam Kidan, chief executive officer of Dial-A-Mattress' Mid-Atlantic franchise. ``We do this on a regular basis.''
Shavonda Rhodes is a shelter resident and is looking forward to a new mattress.
``The bed I have now is a little lumpy,'' Rhodes said. ``This will be a lot better. I'll have something that fits on the box spring. I'll hopefully be sleeping on it tonight.''
The Salvation Army, Union Mission, Homeless Haven and the Women-In-Crisis center also received free bedding. Dial-A-Mattress executives worked with the mayor's office to find a ``good cross-section of charities,'' Kidan said.
Started in New York in 1977, Dial-A-Mattress franchises serve cities along the East Coast. Bedding is delivered within two hours after a telephone order, 24 hours a day. A staff of consultants and doctors advise and assist customers with their selections. A quality mattress, box spring and frame from popular manufacturers cost about $500.
Talk-show celebrity David Letterman once called Dial-A-Mattress and had a mattress delivered to the roof of his car on 34th Street in New York.
The company's closest current area of service is Washington, D.C. The planned Norfolk site will serve all of South Hampton Roads and the Peninsula.
``We've tested this market, and it's a good one,'' Kidan said. ``There is a large population, and it's somewhat transient. There's a lot of need for mattresses in the area.'' ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by VICKI CRONIS
Some of the 32 mattresses are carried into The Dwelling Place.
by CNB