Stearns & Foster® Donates $1 Million in Mattresses to Salvation Army

TRINITY, N.C., Jan. 4, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Stearns & Foster, owned by Sealy, North America's No. 1 mattress brand, announced today it will donate $1 million worth of new mattresses to The Salvation Army, ensuring those in need who rely on The Salvation Army's residential shelters will sleep easier knowing that they will have a safe and comfortable place to rest their heads.

"The Stearns & Foster brand is proud to partner with a wonderful organization like The Salvation Army to provide $1 million worth of new mattresses to those who need it most," said Jodi Allen, Chief Marketing Officer, Sealy. "This donation provides the gift of sleep to men, women and children across the country, continuing the legacy on which this brand was founded."

Stearns & Foster teamed up with its retailers this winter and based the donation amount on the number of mattress sets sold between November 22, 2010 and January 3, 2011. Participating Stearns & Foster retailers also supported their local Salvation Army residential shelters by participating in a retailer gift-matching opportunity.  

"We were so pleased with the success of our first-ever Gift of Sleep event for Stearns & Foster, having reached our maximum level of donation of $1 million dollars," said Louis Bachicha, Executive VP of Sales, Sealy.  "We cannot thank our retail partners enough for their tremendous support of the program to help such a great cause."      

Nationwide, The Salvation Army's residential shelters provide support to men, women and children at the point of need, with programs operating 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Families who are in need of assistance are able to visit their local Salvation Army residential shelters to receive a variety of support services, including food, counseling and financial assistance.

"The donation from the Stearns & Foster brand fulfills a very basic need for the 30 million Americans who rely on assistance from The Salvation Army," said Major George Hood, National Community Relations Secretary for The Salvation Army. "We look forward to distributing this generous gift to our communities and seeing the impact a good night's sleep is sure to have."

For more details on Sealy's Stearns & Foster® Gift of Sleep visit StearnsandFoster.com.

About Sealy

Sealy is the bedding industry's largest global manufacturer with sales of $1.3 billion in fiscal 2009. The company manufactures and markets a broad range of mattresses and foundations under the Sealy®, Sealy Posturepedic®, Sealy Embody™, Stearns & Foster® and Bassett® brands. Sealy operates 25 plants in North America, and has the largest market share and highest consumer awareness of any bedding brand on the continent. In the United States, Sealy sells its products to approximately 3,000 customers with more than 7,000 retail outlets. Sealy is also a leading supplier to the hospitality industry. For more information, please visit http://www.sealy.com.

About The Salvation Army

The Salvation Army, an evangelical part of the universal Christian church established in London in 1865, has been supporting those in need in His name without discrimination for 130 years in the United States. Nearly 30 million Americans receive assistance from The Salvation Army each year through the broadest array of social services that range from providing food for the hungry, relief for disaster victims, assistance for the disabled, outreach to the elderly and ill, clothing and shelter to the homeless and opportunities for underprivileged children. 82 cents of every dollar The Salvation Army spends is used to support those services in 5,000 communities nationwide. For more information, go to www.salvationarmyusa.org.

SOURCE Sealy