A Message from Leah Hebert Welles, CEO of Open Arms of Minnesota
Dear Open Arms Community,
I am writing to our community today with a heavy heart. Due to significant federal and state funding issues, Open Arms is facing an unprecedented financial challenge that will impact the way we serve our community.
Our organization has been informed of a drastic cut to our Ryan White funding starting this April, amounting to more than $650,000 in reductions over the next year – due to a $20 million deficit in funding at the state level. Compounding this crisis is a federal funding situation that is like nothing we have ever seen. What began as a total funding freeze ordered by the Trump administration, disrupting essential and expected payments on our existing contracts, has now created fear and uncertainty for our future. One of our current federal grants that pays for local purchasing of ingredients for meals remains frozen today. Nonprofits like Open Arms who hold federal funding relationships are being told to prepare for the worst, as Washington continues to debate the future of federal grants like the ones we receive to provide meals to our elderly and our HIV positive clients.
These financial obstacles have forced us to take difficult and immediate steps to reduce expenses and make sure we are best positioned for long-term stability.
What This Means for Our Clients:
- Pause on New Client Intakes: We are unable to accept new clients at this time, with limited exceptions based on existing contracts and funding sources. We anticipate this pause on new clients to last through March 2025, and we will reassess our capacity regularly.
- Waitlist Implementation: Clients we cannot onboard at this time will be placed on a waitlist. They will be contacted as soon as we can resume services. In the meantime, we will work with referrers to identify alternate short-term food resources.
- Temporary Service Reductions: Regrettably, we have had to suspend services for some existing clients. We are deeply sorry for the impact this will have on their lives and remain committed to restoring full services as soon as we are able.
- Caregiver and Dependent Meals: We have temporarily reduced the number of caregivers and dependents we can serve, limiting meals to primary clients and one additional household member.
We are doing everything possible to maintain the highest level of service for those who depend on us. Despite reducing client numbers, we will continue to provide over 12,000 meals per week to 1300+ clients who need us.
What This Means for Open Arms Moving Forward:
To address this financial crisis, we have made the difficult decision to reduce staffing and implement other cost-saving measures. These choices were not made lightly, and you can imagine how this impacts our dedicated staff.
I understand that this news may be distressing, and I want to express my deep gratitude to the entire Open Arms community—our clients, caregivers, volunteers, donors, community partners, and staff. Your unwavering commitment to our mission inspires us to persevere.
Please know that we remain strategic and determined. And we remain here. We will continue to do what we do best – build community and serve our clients. With your support, we will continue adapt to these new and unprecedented challenges with resilience and compassion.
Thank you for standing with us during this challenging time. Open Arms has a proud and storied history of persevering in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds. Whether navigating a pandemic or a financial crisis, resilience is in our DNA. I believe in the strength of this community and invite you to join me as we continue serving the most vulnerable among us.
If you have questions or would like to speak to me further, please feel free to reach out to me at [email protected].
Warmly,
Leah Hebert Welles
CEO, Open Arms of Minnesota
P.S. Many of you have asked what you can do to help. Please consider calling your elected officials in Washington DC and sharing how important it is to honor existing federal contracts and continue funding food resources for those most vulnerable in our communities.
And please consider supporting Open Arms when you can. www.openarmsmn.org/donate
