The Emmaus Garden Club, at a luncheon Aug. 2 at Faith Presbyterian Church, Emmaus, presented the East Penn Neighbors Helping Neighbors organization with a donation of $5,100 to help defray costs of transitional housing for an East Penn family in need.

In cooperation with East Penn School District social workers, Neighbors Helping Neighbors identifies a nuclear family in need and provides a year of housing and other services and helps the family find affordable housing to meet their needs after the transitional period.

The group’s history traces back to 2013 when participants of Emmaus Ecumenical Ministerium agreed to rent an apartment in Emmaus to support one homeless family in the East Penn School District.

That pilot program led to the successful transitioning of multiple families from homelessness to places of sustainability.

As the number of families in need grew, the ministerium invited local businesses and individuals to partner in the program.

In 2014, the leadership of the ministerium transitioned to a board of directors and a new non-religious charitable 502(c)3 nonprofit organization was established in 2015.

The Emmaus Garden Club raised the money for the Neighbors Helping Neighbors donation through a fundraiser involving tours of personal home gardens of private residences in the East Penn area.