It’s the middle of summer now, but believe or not, school is just around the corner and we’re excited to kick off another session of Families on the Move.

Families on the Move (FOTM) is a comprehensive out-of-school program that empowers youth and their families with homework assistance, peer support, enrichment activities, and more.

If you have a middle or high school student who is interested in participating in FOTM, follow the button below, then scroll to the bottom of the page and click, “I’m Interested.” Someone from our staff will be in touch shortly.

Spoiler Alert: You may already know him! 

For the last several years, Interim Executive Director Joseph Iarocci has done an incredible job leading us through this transition. Meanwhile, David-Lee Mattison has gotten to know many of you as our Chief Program Officer, spearheading important programs and initiatives like Families on the Move, Freedom School, various food security partnerships, and more.

He came to us after more than two decades working with vulnerable populations in Atlanta. Under his programmatic leadership, we’ve increased our social services, expanded key partnerships, and elevated our educational offerings. We couldn’t be more thrilled to have his experience and servant’s heart leading our work as we look to the future. 

Please join us in welcoming our new permanent Executive Director, David-Lee Mattison.

A Conversation With David-Lee

We recently caught up with David-Lee to learn more about his experience at Emmaus House thus far, as well as his vision for the future.

What first attracted you to Emmaus House?  

The fact that Emmaus House is a faith- and place-based organization, and that it offered me the chance to get back into the full social services field. 

What has your experience been like as Chief Program Officer? 

My experience has been nothing less than amazing. Since I began at Emmaus House, I’ve had the opportunity to build new long-term partnerships with agencies that provide on-site health clinics, banking options, mental health support, as well as more direct social services. I’ve also been able to build relationships with long-term community members, which is vital to the work we do.

What are you most looking forward to as Executive Director?

I’m excited to continue building on the strong foundation that already exists at Emmaus House. As always, our priorities will be guided by the needs of our community, as well as by the insight and experience of our amazing staff and board. I’m looking forward to leveraging my past experience in housing to strengthen the support we offer our most vulnerable residents, and I would love to explore more ways to serve our seniors and provide wraparound social services to the community. 

Where do you see Emmaus House headed over the next several years?

One of the great things about being a place-based organization is that where we’re headed is where we are. We will continue to serve and grow alongside this historic community, rising to meet new challenges and making the most of new opportunities. We're already exploring exciting new ways to serve our community, and look forward to sharing more soon!

Connecting Through Literacy

Literacy is about more than reading. It’s a way of connecting with one another, our families, and our communities. Help young scholars in our community grow more connected by contributing to our $35,000 fundraising goal by June 30!

Your donations provide young scholars with quality literacy training, counseling, enrichment activities, and meals for six weeks during the summer.

One generous donor has already agreed to match all donations up to $30K, so don’t miss this opportunity to double your impact and foster connection through imagination, service, and literacy!

Just the Beginning

So much of children’s futures depends on their ability to read. Literacy supports students’ academic performance, their ability to imagine better futures for themselves, and their ability to access opportunity.

But literacy is just the beginning.

The Children's Defense Fund (CDF) Freedom Schools® curriculum teaches young scholars to read in a way that connects them to one another, their families, and their communities.

When young people are able to bridge the divide between the classroom and their daily lives, it gives new meaning to literacy, and creates a foundation they can build their futures on—and ours.

We Need Your Support

Help us reach our $35,000 fundraising goal by June 30 so we can continue building a more connected and inspired community. For us, it’s dollars and cents, but for our students, it’s proof that someone out there believes in their ability to succeed.

We can do it, but only with your help. We’re so grateful for your support.

We’re excited to share our 2026 Impact Report with you! 

Inside, you’ll find a letter from our staff, an overview of the vital programs and services we offer, and how they have impacted our community as well as one specific family new to Atlanta.

One thing we want to emphasize up front, however, is that none of this impact would be possible without our community of partners, volunteers, and supporters. 

It would not be possible without you.

So as you join us in celebrating the incredible impact our work has had on the community this past year, know that we are also celebrating you. Because of you, our community is strong!

Click here to open the 2026 Impact Report in a new tab.

This past week, Emmaus House Chief Program Officer David-Lee Mattison spoke with CBS News Atlanta about how nonpayment is affecting local TSA agents and their families.

The story covered how local organizations are stepping up to offer support, and the importance of serving these and other vulnerable families with dignity and respect.

Click below to check out the full story.

In February, the Georgia House Education Committee passed the Georgia Early Literacy Act of 2026—a new bill addressing Georgia’s low literacy rates.

The bill follows a study from the Georgia Literacy Council, which found that 62% of Georgia third-graders aren’t able to read proficiently.

Third grade is an important milestone for literacy. It’s when students are transitioning from “learning to read” to “reading to learn.”

Studies show that children who cannot read well by third grade are four times more likely to drop out of school. Lawmakers hope the bill’s measures will also impact Georgia’s adult literacy rate, currently ranked 45th in the nation according to a report from ThinkImpact.

House Bill 1193

The Georgia Early Literacy Act of 2026 will attempt to help early readers by providing support and guidance to schools, teachers, and families.

Classroom literacy coaches will support teachers with things like lesson planning, co-teaching, and mentoring, while regional leadership coaches will train principals and superintendents in literacy education and make recommendations for how they can support teachers.

The bill also requires children to attend a full-day kindergarten program before they can enroll in first grade, ensuring most students begin their education at age 5 (instead of 6). It will also require schools to develop intervention plans for kindergarteners at risk of not reading at grade level.

The bill passed the Georgia House of Representatives 170-2 in February with overwhelming bipartisan support, although it still needs to be approved by the Senate before the lawmaking session ends on April 2.

Closing the Gap

Classroom interventions are important for improving literacy, although they don’t address some of the most significant factors that affect students from families with low income—many of which occur outside the classroom.

Summer learning loss and inadequate access to learning resources contribute to the literacy gap between lower-income and higher-income students. That’s why, at Emmaus House, we make a point of investing in outside-the-classroom programs like Families on the Move and the CDF Freedom School.

We’re as excited as anyone about the Georgia Early Literacy Act of 2026; it is a major step toward addressing Georgia’s flagging literacy rates. Although without corresponding out-of-classroom support, it’s possible for literacy rates to improve while the gaps between lower-income and higher-income students continue to widen.

We recently opened enrollment for this year’s Freedom School program (which will take place June 15 - July 24) and were quickly overwhelmed by the response. Within days, we had received well over 170 applications—far more than we can accommodate.

So, as of this time, enrollment is currently closed.

Expanding Our Impact

Dozens of families in our community depend on this free, 6-week program for summer literacy training, as well as enrichment, nutritional opportunities, and a safe, supportive place for their children to spend time during the summer months.

Demand is high, and we’re currently exploring ways to expand the program’s capacity, although it will likely require hiring additional Student Leader Interns to support the additional scholars.

You Can Help

If you’re interested in learning more and potentially supporting our Freedom School program, please click below. As one of our most popular and impactful programs, we would love to expand it, although we need your help to do so.

We’re so grateful for your support.

For 41 years, the Atlanta Community Food Bank has hosted the Hunger Walk Run, an annual 5K that brings together people and organizations from all over Atlanta to fight food insecurity in our communities.

Since it began in 1984, the Hunger Walk Run has raised more than $16 million for hunger relief—that’s roughly 48 million meals!

This year, the 42nd Annual Hunger Walk Run will take place at 2:00 pm on March 15 at The Home Depot Backyard. Participants are able to attend either in-person or virtually, with all proceeds helping to feed vulnerable families within our communities.

Support Our Food Security Partnership With Saint Paul’s Episcopal Church

We’re very pleased to announce that, this year, we are joining with St. Paul’s Episcopal Church to support our shared food security partnership.

When teams register for the Hunger Walk Run each year, they have the opportunity to select a beneficiary that supports neighbors in need of food assistance. These organizations help recruit participants, with a percentage of all funds supporting their own hunger relief initiatives.

For many years, St. Paul’s has led a committed and successful team in the Hunger Walk Run, and this year, we’re excited to join them. Together, we can do more to help Atlanta families.

Join the Team

We hope you’ll support us and our partners at St. Paul’s by joining the St. Paul’s Episcopal Church (Atlanta) team and raising as much money as you can to combat food insecurity. 

To join, click the link below and follow these instructions:

1. Click “Join Team”

2. Click “Join as a New Participant” (or if you’re a returning user, log in)

3. Complete your registration

Every dollar you raise will help fight food insecurity in Atlanta, and a portion of it will directly benefit our partnership with St. Paul’s. 

So please join us in taking part in this incredible tradition and ensuring our neighbors have access to healthy, nutritious foods.

We say often that the strength of our community is in how we show up for one another. That was certainly true of our year-end fundraising effort.

Thanks to your support, not only did we meet our $80K fundraising goal, we far exceeded it, raising a total of $100,988 for our most successful end-of-year campaign ever!

Planning for the Future

Year-end donations are critical to our work. They allow us to plan our impact and ensure our neighbors receive the maximum benefit in the year to come.

Your donations will allow us to provide multigenerational programs and services that strengthen our community and support southside residents of all ages.

Because when we each have what we need to thrive, we have more to offer one another.

Our Deepest Thanks

As a community, we depend on one another. We truly could not do the work we do without the generous support of people like you.

Our deepest, most heartfelt thanks to everyone who donated to this year’s fundraiser. We’re fortunate to have a community like you behind us.