YORK, Pa. - Temperatures were in the teens, on Saturday, when the First Presbyterian Church of York was hosting a free book giveaway. A church member noticed a couple, out in the cold, and invited them in for warmth, coffee and a free book.
" As we talked to them, some of our members talked to them the story emerged that they didn’t have a place to stay for the night," said Pastor Allison Beaulieu, First Presbyterian Church of York.
As the members talked to the couple, they found out they recently moved from the Bronx, New York to York. Their apartment was in need of repairs. It had no heat.
The congregation pitched in and was able to collect enough money to give the couple a hotel room for the night. The Yorktowne Hotel even gave the church a discount on the cost of the room.
"It really sets an example of what downtown partnerships can do for the residents of York City," said Beaulieu.
The free book giveaway did not go as well as planned, but members feel the whole event was meant to be a front for them to help the couple.
"They came back the next day, at church, to worship with us and some of us took them out to lunch. It was a really, it was a sweet Valentine’s Day on that day," said member, Jenna Reedy.
Wednesday the couple was able to get back into their apartment.