Open Arms of Minnesota

OUR MISSION: With open arms we nourish body, mind, and soul.

Open Arms of Minnesota is the only nonprofit in the state of Minnesota that cooks and delivers free meals for people with chronic and life threatening illnesses — food that is cooked, packed and delivered by a base of about 1,400 volunteers.

In 2011, Open Arms will cook and deliver more than 400,000 meals to people living with HIV/AIDS, ALS, breast cancer, MS and more than 60 other diseases. We also provide meals for their caregivers and dependent children. Each week, our clients receive five days worth of meals, including breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. We believe that eating delicious, nutritious meals helps make our clients’ medicines and treatments more effective, so they are able to lead healthier, more independent lives.

With that goal in mind, our chefs and dietitian work together to create a variety of menus that not only meet the needs of our clients' diseases, but also taste delicious. All of our food is cooked in-house — with the exception of items such as crackers, breakfast cereal and Ensure — including all breads and baked breakfast items. We include local, organic ingredients wherever possible. This year, we planted a 2-acre organic garden that produced more than 20,000 pounds of certified organic produce, a healthy portion of our annual veggie needs.

Volunteers are integral to our work. We offer opportunities to cook, bake, deliver and, now, plant and harvest food. Volunteers love working with us because it's fun, meaningful, and they can immediately see and feel the impact of their work.

A donation to Open Arms ensures that we continue to bring nutritious food to people in our community who are ill, and helps us progress towards our vision -- a world of abundance where no one goes hungry.