There is a moment every parent knows. The one where you check on your child before you go to bed yourself. You crack the door, you listen, and when everything is still and quiet, you finally allow yourself to exhale. For Amanda Steele, a single mother of multiple children with special needs, that moment had not come easily in a long time. Until it did.
This is the story of how a community of donors, a dedicated organization and care coordinator, and the D&F Charity Trust came together to give a little boy named La’Ryin exactly what every child deserves: a safe place to sleep.
La’Ryin and His Mom
Amanda Steele is a single mother of three children with autism. Within the past year, she had also undergone multiple surgeries, all while managing the daily weight of raising her kids with limited family support. There was not much margin for anything to go wrong.
Her young son La’Ryin had pica, a condition that compels individuals to eat non-food materials. He had eaten through the mesh of a safety sleeper and he had worked through the zipper on another. Every bed meant to keep him safe had eventually become a hazard, and finding a solution had become one more impossible thing on an already impossible list.
“She was very taxed, very busy, spread very thin,” said Jessie Nordan, LICSW, La’Ryin’s care coordinator at Alabama’s Children’s Rehabilitation Services. “She’s a single mom with limited family support, and she just needed help.”
La’Ryin’s pediatrician recommended a zPod bed, a specialized, 360-degree enclosed sleep system designed for children with autism, sensory processing disorders, and conditions like pica. According to zPod’s official website, the bed is crafted from durable polyethylene and includes a control panel, multi-mood LED lighting, fan control, Bluetooth speakers, and sliding doors that are easy to remove and reinstall.
For individuals with pica specifically, the secure enclosure and padded interior provide peace of mind for caregivers while ensuring a safe sleep environment. There are no zippers to chew. No mesh to tear apart. Just a sturdy, safe, calm space where a child can get the rest his growing body and mind need.
The challenge was the cost. A zPod runs well beyond what most families can absorb out of pocket, and standard community funding sources Jessie works with have a cap that falls significantly short of what the bed requires.
“Initially I was like, I don’t know,” Jessie recalled. “Our typical community funding has a $2,000 cap, and this was just a lot.”
Then, around the same time, an email came through about D&F Charity Trust and its connection to Alabama’s Children’s Rehabilitation Services. Jessie recognized an opportunity.
D&F Charity Trust Steps In
On June 22nd, one week after Amanda first brought the zPod to Jessie’s attention, Jessie sent an application on behalf of the family to Matt Dura, Director of the Charity Golf Classics. Matt responded on behalf of the trust quickly, expressing interest but asking for a fuller picture of the family’s situation. Jessie got to work. She wrote a narrative that captured not just La’Ryin’s needs, but the full weight of what Amanda was carrying. Photos of the family were included, putting a face to the story. Amanda, for her part, completed every step of the process with determination and speed.
“To the credit of Ms. Steele, she did everything that was asked of her,” Jessie said. “I’m very grateful for her determination and the love she has for her children and wanting them to be safe.”
By early August, the zPod had been delivered. The process from initial call to delivery had taken less than two months.
D&F Charity Trust CEO and President Dawn Knox reflected on what moments like this mean to the organization.
“When we look at what this charity exists to do, it comes down to filling the gaps that no one else can fill. La’Ryin’s family needed something that insurance would not cover and that most funding sources could not reach. That is exactly where we want to be. That is Whatever it Takes.” — Dawn Knox, CEO/President, D&F Charity Trust
Peace of Mind
When the zPod arrived, Amanda sent photos. La’Ryin, tucked safely inside what Jessie affectionately describes as looking like “a Little Tikes spaceship,” was sleeping. Really sleeping.
Amanda reached out to D&F Charity Trust directly to share what the bed had meant to her family.
“I wanted to personally thank you for helping my son with the bed you purchased for him. It has made sleep so much better and he is safe. My family is forever thankful.” — Amanda Steele, La’Ryin’s mother
She sent more photos shortly after, adding: “We are beyond thankful. The impact has been life changing for my family.”
When word got back that the bed had been delivered, Jessie already knew what it meant for that family.
“I know that her peace of mind in that moment, when he was tucked safely into bed and she did not have to worry about him getting out, running out of the house, getting in the street, all of these things that are a mom’s worst nightmare, giving her that peace of mind was worth every penny. And I’m very, very grateful.”
Why It Matters
Stories like La’Ryin’s are why D&F Charity Trust exists. Over its lifetime, the D&F Charity Trust has raised more than $3 million gross, and not a cent of that goes back to the organization. Every dollar goes toward the people and programs that need it. And according to Jessie, without organizations like D&F Charity Trust, her hands and the hands of CRS workers across Alabama would be tied in ways that would ultimately cost children the care they need to thrive.
“There are just some things that insurance does not cover that our kids need,” she said. “Without charities, I really don’t know what we would do. Having these charities available is just a tremendous blessing.”
CRS operates 14 offices across Alabama, serving every county in the state, supporting children and families navigating complex medical and developmental needs every single day. D&F Charity Trust’s partnership with CRS ensures that when a family hits a wall, there is someone ready to help them through it.
If you would like to support families like La’Ryin’s, you can make a tax-deductible donation year-round or explore sponsorship opportunities at dfcharitytrust.com. Whatever it Takes starts with you.
