Open Arms of Minnesota
Open Arms of MN is a non-profit that prepares and delivers medically tailored, nutritious meals to people in the Twin Cities area living with a life-threatening illness. This is all free of cost to our clients and includes caregivers and dependent children.
Our mission at Open Arms of MN (OAM) is to provide food as medicine, to nourish our clients and to build community. Our purpose is to create an inclusive and joyful community while providing high-quality meals, nutritional education and hope for our clients. All meals are provided free of cost to our clients, their caregivers and dependents. During our 2024-2025 fiscal year, we served 3,687 clients and prepared and delivered 1,484,845 meals. Over 6,000 volunteers helped us advance our mission.
OAM is unique in that it fills a food gap that other organizations do not. If critically ill people obtain food from a food shelf or free meal program, without nutritional standards or nutrition education, they may receive foods high in salt and saturated fats, exacerbating their conditions rather than improving them.
We operate 5 urban farms, using organic methods, turning vacant lots into vibrant gardens, transforming underutilized urban spaces into healthy food to nourish the community.
Funds will be used to provide meals for clients residing within the Eastside Co-op service area. We currently serve 562 clients living in the following communities: North, NE and South Minneapolis, New Brighton, Columbia Heights, St Anthony, Fridley, Shoreview, Roseville & Arden Hills. Medically tailored meals focus on nutrition to address disease causes and lessen reliance on medication, leading to better health outcomes and reductions in hospitalizations and medical costs.
The results of our FY24 Annual Client Survey clearly demonstrate the impact on our clients in the program: 94% reported that Open Arms meals helped maintain a healthier diet 90% reported that Open Arms has helped them eat more fruits & vegetables 87% of clients reported a reduction in overall stress This year, we are experiencing significant reductions in government funding and are actively engaging our community partners to help address these financial shortfalls.