Virginia Tech football players are known for making big plays on the field, but today they made an even bigger impact off of it. The team traded shoulder pads for power tools to help meet a basic need for local kids. Today’s mission didn’t involve a playbook—just lumber, tools, and a whole lot of Hokie hustle.
The Virginia Tech football players suited up for something different today: building beds with Sleep in Heavenly Peace for kids who don’t have one of their own.
Paul Mele, chapter president for the New River Valley chapter of Sleep in Heavenly Peace, shared the need in the community. “Kids in our New River Valley, Montgomery and Pulaski County that are sleeping on the floor, sleeping on their parents’ end of the bed, on a couch, or nothing. So, the football players are out here turning a whole lot of lumber into 40 twin-size beds.”
But it’s more than just wood and nails. For the families receiving these beds, the gesture means comfort, dignity, and hope.
Mele noted the emotional impact of the project. “We see a full range of emotions from parents: tears, joy, sometimes hesitancy to let people help them, but they made the important step and asked for help.”
This spirit of serving others is at the heart of everything Virginia Tech stands for, according to head coach Brent Pry. “It all goes back to Virginia Tech and our motto, right, ‘Ut Prosim’—that I may serve. It carries through our football program from top to bottom, so this was another opportunity for these guys to understand what that really means.”
From drilling to hammering to sanding, many of the student-athletes say this kind of hands-on giving is just as important as what happens on game day.
Linebacker Jaden Keller expressed gratitude for the community’s support. “The community supports us so much; they show us so much love. They come to every home game. All we can do is try to give back as much as we possibly can, whether that’s community service or whether that’s the games.” The team built 40 beds with about 145 volunteers.
Nationwide, Sleep in Heavenly Peace reports that about 3% of children ages 3 to 17 don’t have a bed. Efforts like this help close that gap—one bed at a time.