Happy New Year from all of us at EDEN—thank you for being part of our community and sharing in the hope of a future where every family has a safe, secure place to call home!
So that our staff can enjoy the holiday, EDEN will be closed Thursday, January 1.
• If you experience a housing emergency and need immediate assistance, please contact your case manager/housing provider or call 2-1-1.
• EDEN’s answering service will take messages for EDEN-owned properties only.
• If you have paperwork to drop off, please leave it in our dropbox at 7812 Madison Ave, Cleveland. Be sure to include your name and your Specialist’s or Property Manager’s name.
We Wish Everyone a Very Joyous and Prosperous New Year!
EDEN’s mission is to provide housing solutions to people facing the challenges of housing insecurities and homelessness.
Make a Meaningful Difference Today
Data shows that 233,000 households in Cuyahoga County—42% of our community—are living paycheck to paycheck. These are people who may be working beside us every day. They are one unexpected illness, one car repair, or one rent increase away from becoming unhoused. Anyone can be the face of homelessness.
In 2024, EDEN supported more than 10,000 people through housing, rental assistance, shelter access, and homelessness prevention programs. And in 2025, the need is only increasing—just as federal funding that sustains this vital safety net is under serious threat.
As uncertainty grows, EDEN remains fiercely committed to keeping the door to stability open for those who need it most. But we cannot do it alone.
Act now!
1.Please donate to EDEN. Your support allows EDEN to continue providing the housing solutions our community urgently needs.
2. Raise Awareness: Share with your networks how deeply our community relies on this safety net—and how devastating funding cuts would be. Your voice helps ensure that housing stability remains a priority.
3. Contact Congress: Urge your federal legislators to maintain 12 months of Continuum of Care (CoC) funding at current levels and protect homelessness programs in the THUD bill. These funds are essential to keeping our most vulnerable neighbors housed. You can find your legislators here.
This moment calls for action, compassion, and unity. Together, we can ensure that thousands of our neighbors do not have to combat homelessness alone.
Even in the hardest times, hope has a home!
A Message from Elaine Gimmel, Executive Director
Dear EDEN Friends and Partners:
This year has been one of the most difficult in EDEN's history. Across the nonprofit and homeless services sector, organizations like ours are facing unprecedented uncertainty. Federal, state, and local funding cuts, program reimbursement delays, drastic and sudden changes to public policy priorities, and escalating construction and development costs are threatening the very systems that keep people safe, housed, and supported.
And yet we remain determined to be there for those who need us. We stand firm in our belief that a place to call home is the foundation to health and stability.
EDEN's mission remains straightforward and clear: to provide housing solutions to those facing the challenges of housing insecurity and homelessness.
The need has never been greater
As demand rises, our resources are stretched thinner. We face devastating funding reductions that could limit our ability to respond to this growing need.
Still — we will not give up.
Every day, our team continues to advocate and act. We draw our strength from the people we serve: individuals and families who demonstrate incredible courage and perseverance in the face of adversity.
They remind us what resilience looks like. They remind us why this work matters.
Our impact on the community is significant
EDEN’s mission is to provide housing solutions to people facing the challenges of housing insecurities and homelessness. To do this, we work closely with community and government partners to leverage available resources and implement proven housing strategies and related supportive services.
EDEN develops, owns and manages housing, administers rental assistance programs, and provides homeless prevention funding mainly to residents of NE Ohio.
We provide housing assistance to at-risk individuals and families—including children, young adults, seniors, people with disabilities, veterans, households fleeing domestic violence/human trafficking, individuals who have been involved with the justice system, and more.
In 2024, we served 4,128 households (7,378 individuals) with supportive housing, rental assistance, housing location and stabilization services, and more.
Another 797 households (1,714 individuals) received homeless/eviction prevention assistance.
EDEN owns the Norma Herr Women's Center, which is the primary shelter in Cuyahoga County for adult women. 1,119 received shelter services at Norma Herr in 2024.
In total, EDEN assisted 10,211 people with housing, homeless prevention assistance, and shelter in 2024.
2025 Milestones
Despite challenges, we celebrated significant achievements in 2025:
We made significant progress on the Norma Herr emergency shelter renovation and expansion (pictured). - We celebrated full lease-up of The Lotus, our supportive housing building for young adults.
- In partnership with CHN Housing Partners, the Veterans Administration, and Benjamin Rose Institute on Aging, we broke ground on Emerald Senior, which will be supportive housing for seniors experiencing homelessness and senior veterans experiencing homelessness.
- We completed processing all ERA2 Homeless Prevention funds.
- We were awarded Low Income Housing Tax Credits for Broadway Commons in Lorain (in partnership with CHN Housing Partners).
- We began rehabilitation of our second building in Lakewood.
Each of these accomplishments is proof that even amid tremendous challenges, EDEN continues to move forward.
As EDEN commemorates 35 years, your support matters more than ever!
In 2026, EDEN will celebrate 35 years of providing safe, stable, housing and related supports to thousands of individuals and families. And while this milestone deserves celebration, it also serves as a sobering reminder: our mission is even more urgent today than it was in 1991.
Your annual fund gift ensures that EDEN can continue to:
- Move people off the streets and into housing.
- Prevent evictions and homelessness before they occur.
- Provide non-congregate emergency shelter for people experiencing homelessness.
- Provide housing supports that help people remain housed.
- Maintain and grow a portfolio of affordable housing.
- Advocate for policies that protect and strengthen the housing safety net.
NOW is the time to stand with EDEN
We have big goals, but we cannot achieve them without you! Your support will provide the critical core operating strength that allows EDEN to weather uncertainty and continue serving those who need us most … next week, next month, and next year.
Please consider supporting EDEN in your 2024 end-of-year giving and 2025 budget! Visit www.EDENcle.org/support and complete the form.
Thank you for your partnership. Thank you for your faith in EDEN. And thank you for believing that a safe home is the foundation for health and stability for those experiencing housing instability and homelessness!
Elaine Gimmel
Executive Director
Welcome to EDEN!
EDEN’s mission is to provide housing solutions to people facing the challenges of housing insecurities and homelessness.
EDEN recognizes that housing is a basic right of all people and is the first step in helping them transform their lives. We believe housing serves as a foundation to build stable lives, advance independence, and fulfill aspirations. We envision that, through our efforts, homelessness will be brief and rare; and every family will have a safe, secure place to call home.
All of our participants are economically disadvantaged, with 89.3% meeting Federal guidelines for extremely low income. We serve young adults aging out of the foster care system and seniors who have fallen into homeless due to health issues and/or having little to no income. Other participants include veterans and survivors of domestic violence or human trafficking. The majority have mental health and/or physical disabilities.
By supporting EDEN’s programs, you help those experiencing housing insecurities and homelessness in Northeast Ohio lay the foundation for stability by helping them to secure and remain in safe and stable housing.
Want to help us? Donate your time, talent and treasure to our cause. To learn more, click here or send an email.
EDEN's mission is to provide housing solutions to people facing the challenges of housing insecurities and homelessness.
7812 Madison Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44102
Phone: 216-961-9690
Client Info Line: 216-634-0202
Property Owner Hotline: 216-503-6369
TDD/TTY: 800-545-1833, ext. 873
Fax: 216-651-4066
Office Hours: 8:30 am - 4:45 pm
© 2021-2025. All rights reserved. Emerald Development and Economic Network, Inc. (EDEN).