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PROVO — A family in Provo is sleeping a little better tonight after a big donation from a group who is helping to make refugees feel at home.
For the Matos family, there has been nothing normal about the last year. Luisa Matos, her husband and their three boys left their native Venezuela seeking better opportunities. Right now, the country is dealing with humanitarian and political crises.
“We feel peace because we don't have the insecurities that we have in our country,” Luisa Matos said.
The family is grateful to be in America but said it has been difficult starting from scratch.
“We left all the stuff in our country, we left our family,” she said. “We left our life in our country.”
The family left with suitcases on travel visas and are now working to obtain asylum in the United States. Their Provo apartment is nearly empty with borrowed furniture.
A group called Sleep in Heavenly Peace is working to change that. Monday night, they donated bunk beds to about a dozen families in Utah County, including the Matos family.
Organizer Matt McEwen said all materials to make the bed frames, mattresses and sheets are donated.
“You know [these kids] go to school and they get free lunch or whatever else they need, but in reality ... they are missing out on some key hours of sleep,” McEwen said.
The group started a Lehi chapter earlier this year and have helped dozens of families. They hope to grow with donations from the community.
For more information, visit the Sleep in Heavenly Peace website.
