For families in the Palmerton Area School District facing a medical crisis, a utility shutoff or even the loss of a roof over their heads, a small all-volunteer nonprofit has quietly become a lifeline.

Raising the House, founded in 2013 to honor a beloved local teacher, will return this year to the Palmerton Community Festival, set for Friday through Sunday at Palmerton Borough Park.

Organizers say they are bringing a new menu item and a new location along with their longstanding mission.

“We came together back in 2013 to honor [Blaine] House,” said Adrianne Allen, president. “We established it in honor of his memory and a spirit of kindness to all of his students.”

Blaine R. House taught and coached football in the Palmerton Area School District for nearly 30 years before his death in 2013. The first event held in his honor — a 5K run/walk — raised enough money to fund new playground equipment at Towamensing Elementary. The organization grew from there.

Today, Raising the House runs several programs for district students and families.

“We’ve paid things like medical bills, utility bills, even housed them for a brief period of time so they could find permanent housing,” Allen said.

The organization also operates a backpack program targeting food insecurity at the junior high and high school level, providing food to students every two weeks. Teachers across the district can apply twice yearly for classroom enhancement grants.

“We get several applications, and then we have to vote on what we can do for this time,” Allen said.

All of it is funded through events like the festival and the annual 5K. Because the group relies entirely on volunteers, overhead stays low. “All the fundraising is given back into our programs,” Allen said.

The 10-member board does the bulk of the work year-round, leaning on community volunteers for specific events. School social workers in the district have come to count on the group. “They’re like a lifeline for them for some suggestions and requests,” Allen said.

At the festival, the group will smoke its own meat on-site, offering pulled pork sandwiches and brisket sandwiches. New this year are brisket and pulled pork bowls.

“It has corn chips and some toppings including cheese,” Allen said. “We’re excited abut it.”

The stand is also moving to a new location this year, on the upper park stretch that is closer to the bandstand.

Visitors to the stand will also be able to pick up information about the organization’s services and volunteer opportunities. When asked what Raising the House needs most, Allen pointed first to funding, with volunteers a close second.

In five years, she said, the goal is simple: reach more people.

“We’d like to still be helping the families of the school district with a greater impact, of course, in five years — actually touching more of the students on an everyday basis,” Allen said.

Raising the House can be found on Facebook and Instagram at @rth_palmerton, or at raisingthehouse.org.