Project Open Hand

Specialties

Project Open Hand provides nutrition services to the homebound/​critically ill, seniors, and people living with HIV/​AIDS in San Francisco and Alameda counties.

Programs include: meal, grocery, and nutrition counseling for people with HIV/​AIDS; congregating lunch and nutrition education for people over 60 years;and meal services for homebound and critically ill under 60 yeards.

Project Open Hand’s «meals with love» programs have serviced the community for 25 years with the goal of improving the quality of life for the men, women, and children it serves.

History

Established in 1985.

In 1985 in San Francisco, Ruth Brinker, a retired grandmother, watched a dear friend die of AIDS. She realized that for many people with HIV/​AIDS, malnutrition was causing death as much as the illness itself. At that time, no social service agency was providing meals to those too weak from AIDS or too impoverished to feed themselves. Using her experience as a manager with another food program, Ruth enlisted the help of her friends, secured a basement kitchen at a local church and began to serve meals to seven clients, Project Open Hand was born.

As more people heard about Ruth’s «project» more requests started coming in for home-​delivered meals and Ruth put out a call for volunteers. Project Open Hand has not stopped growing since.

At the beginning of 2000, Project Open Hand expanded its services to provide «meals with love» to people who are homebound and critically ill. Now, Ruth’s original vision of nutrition with compassion is being shared with other people in need.