A Legacy of Nutrition for All
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1988
Michael Edwards-Pruitt, who rounded up his neighbors to help cook and deliver meals to 14 friends dying from AIDS who were too sick to cook for themselves, thus Project Open Hand is founded in Atlanta.
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1988
Project Open Hand moves to the rectory kitchen of St. Bart's Episcopal Church and wins its first Managing for Excellence Award given by The Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta (CFforGA).
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1989
Open Hand moves into Bass High School's renovated kitchen to temporarily accommodate substantial first-year growth.
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1990
Karen Boyles named our first Executive Director.
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1994
Volunteer dietitians, Shelly Morewessel and Dr. Chris Rosenbloom, create the first custom menus to address nutrition challenges specific to people with AIDS.
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1995
Open Hand moves into 176 Ottley Drive.
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1995
Project Open Hand partners with the Atlanta Community Food Bank to start The Atlanta Collaborative Kitchen, designed to battle homelessness through job training in the culinary arts.
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1996
Stephen Woods is appointed Executive Director.
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2000
Open Hand's mission expands to include those with non-HIV related nutrition-sensitive critical illnesses, related critical illnesses, the disabled, and the homebound elderly.
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2000
Open Hand earns its first senior meal contract to provide fresh, healthy meals to Fulton County seniors.
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2003
Open Hand hosts the first-ever Party In The Kitchen fundraising event.
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2005
Good Measure Meals is launched as Open Hand's social enterprise.
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2007
Project Open Hand officially becomes Open Hand.
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2009
Open Hand delivers its 10 millionth meal and is selected to receive the Managing for Excellence Award by The Community Foundation of Greater Atlanta.
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2010
OH partners with the Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC) to develop and support a senior center healthy gardening initiative.
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2011
Open Hand becomes a licensed Medicare provider.
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2012
Matthew Pieper is appointed Open Hand Executive Director.
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2012
Open Hand becomes a charter member of the Food is Medicine Coalition (FIMC), a national association of medically-tailored food and nutrition service providers.
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2012
Open Hand launches a Senior Market Basket product offering to reduce food insecurity, increase intake of healthy foods, and increase nutrition knowledge in high-risk older adults.
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2013
Open Hand launches a Care Transitions Program to reduce re-hospitalization by ensuring that seniors have medically-appropriate meals delivered within 48 hours of their release from the hospital.
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2013
Open Hand becomes the state provider of the nationally acclaimed Cooking Matters program, empowering participants to maximize limited resources; utilizing an evidence-based curriculum to learn how to shop, cook and eat healthy, tasty meals on a limited budget.
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2014
Open Hand's campus triples in size, from 11,000 to 27,000 square feet, as we expand our building at 181 Armour Drive.
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2014
Open Hand develops our first-ever children’s menu and partners with Quality Care for Children (QCC) to serve over 70,000 healthy breakfasts, lunches, and snacks to at-risk metro Atlanta children each summer.
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2015
With Wholesome Wave Georgia and CFforGA, Open Hand pilots a community-level Fruit and Vegetable Prescription Program – an evidenced-based nutrition intervention.
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2016
Open Hand launches a Heathy Retail marketing campaign in a Wayfield Foods located within at-risk community to drive healthier food choices and deliver actionable nutrition education.
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2016
Susan Anderson is appointed Open Hand's first-ever Chief Operating Officer.
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2017
Elton John, longtime supporter of Open Hand, proudly delivers the organization's 25 millionth meal.
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2017
OH Executive Director, Matthew Pieper, is one of five FIMC CEOs chosen to address Congress on the power of medically-tailored food and nutrition services.
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2018
Open Hand launches a customized ordering system affording clients more meal choices than any other community-based nutrition agency in the country.
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2020
Open Hand launches the online telehealth platform "Healthie," to provide telenutrition to at-risk neighbors across Georgia.
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2021
Open Hand breaks its own record by delivering nearly 1.5 million meals, the most meals ever delivered in a single year.
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2023
Open Hand is accredited by Association of Diabetes Care & Education Specialist (ADCES).
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2023
Aleta McLean, Senior Director of Client Services participated in the regional “Come to the Table” event held as a follow-up to the White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition and Health on January 19, 2023. The panel discussion was designed to lift up programs / services / priorities our organization offers to help achieve health equity.
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2023
Open Hand celebrates its 35th year of service by launching an updated brand look to usher us into the next 35 years of service.