They say, “It takes a village,” and that could not be more true at Emmaus. The renovation of the Silverberg home is a beautiful example of the community connecting with the expertise at Emmaus to create something special. At Emmaus, it’s not just about the house, though accessible housing is critical to our mission. It’s also about the environment we create in the house to make it a home.
Emmaus Direct Support Professionals provide personalized support and help facilitate a family atmosphere. People’s lives are changed. None of that is possible without the resources to serve our clients. The Silverberg home renovation could not have been possible without volunteers and financial gifts from the community. During the renovation, Employees from Edward Jones arrived on the scene to help with packing up the home.
MasterCard employees refreshed the yard and did some light demolition. The youth group from Peace United Church of Christ from Rochester, MN cleared away yard debris and tidied the home’s exterior. Restore St. Charles, a loyal monthly volunteer group, painted the interior of the home. The project not only involved sweat equity, but it also required financial resources.
The City Council of St. Charles granted funds through the Public Health, Safety, and Wellness of Resident program. This grant allowed Emmaus to replace the attic insulation. The St. Louis Home Builders Association Charitable Foundation gave towards new toilets and fixtures, window treatments, flooring, and the construction of a fourth bedroom.
The Schaeffer Foundation helped with costs to replace a retaining wall, haul away construction debris, install flooring. Their gift funded a myriad of supplies needed for our in-house facilities team to complete the work.
Our world feels so divided, but in this case, the local government, private donors, companies, and faith communities all came together with one common goal: to take that which was no longer useful and make it a home for those in our community who have a true need. In turn, the women who now live in this home add their gifts into the community.
The women attend worship services, shop in the local stores, and add to the neighborhood’s diversity. They have created and sold artwork. They have expanded their social circle and made new friends. After moving into their new home, the housemates hosted a small get-together at their home to thank the people who had made the project possible. Like the women, their friends and family, new neighbors, donors, volunteers, and the Emmaus team gathered around their kitchen table that evening, we were the very definition of a village.
