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Norfolk mother works to bring family under one roof

Posted at 11:48 PM, May 17, 2016
and last updated 2016-05-18 00:12:19-04

Barbarachel Singleterry received bunks beds for her boys, something most of us take for granted.

"I'm excited. I'm happy," she said.

So, what does it mean to her?

"Just a new beginning for me and my family, a time to get reunited again."

Singleterry has been reunited with her sons after working to get custody of them.

"They've been with my mother over five years now and I needed this bunk bed to regain custody of them," she said.

There were a number of things she had to address before she regained custody of her boys.

Singleterry has worked very hard to reach this point with the help of a non-profit program Children's Health Investment Program (CHIP).

"We're so proud of her, she's come so far," said CHIP President and CEO Trish O'Brien. "She's graduated from TCC and she's working and she's doing everything she needs to do to make sure she's bringing her family back together and this is a huge step."

Singleterry says she couldn't have gotten the beds on her own.  But thanks to two local furniture stores, Ashley HomeStores and Grand Furniture, she was able to receive the bunk bed and mattresses.

"It's a privilege to help those in our community. It's something we have a passion for," said Brett Johnson with Ashley HomeStores. "This is going on our fifth year. Our goal this year is over 150 children to receive a safe and better night's sleep."