Departments and Key Service Areas

Serving our Neighbors for 43 years

OPEN M’s history spans four decades. We began as a mission program started by four Akron churches serving a poor neighborhood of South Akron in 1968. We have grown in service area and scope of operations with the aid of more than 100 covenant churches and businesses.

We respond to the gospel message of Matthew 25: 31-40 with programs that feed the hungry, care for the sick, nurture children, build families, and strengthen the community.

Today, OPEN M serves residents from every corner of Summit County, but most of our work is still concentrated in inner-city Akron where the need is the greatest. We strive to be a listening post for the concerns of economically disadvantaged persons, an advocate for social justice, and a catalyst for positive change.

As a faith-based ministry, we are blessed by a corps of committed volunteers who collectively contribute thousands of hours of service to the community. These wonderful “volunteer angels” allow us to be remarkably efficient with our resources. Ever mindful of the need for stewardship of our financial resources, we continuously seek to collaborate with other social service agencies and church missions in order to wrest the absolute greatest return for our investment.

Programs Are at the Heart of Our Ministry

We deliver health care through our free medical, dental and eye clinics and nutrition through numerous food programs. We help move families out of poverty and into self-sufficiency through a bold and innovative program, Bridges Out of Poverty, and other family development initiatives.

We build families and strengthen the community by our many mentoring, teaching, after school and summer camp programs. These programs foster prayerful reflection, gratitude, teamwork and sportsmanship for the scores of children we touch every day.

Most importantly, we do our work inspired by the love of Jesus Christ for every human being – a love that permeates every aspect of our business.