Today we’d like to introduce you to Leah Hebert Welles.
Hi, Leah. I’m so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
My journey to the nonprofit road starts with my high school life story. I became pregnant in high school and had my daughter as a junior. I finished high school and went to college, but the road was hard, and the experience shaped my view of life and how I wanted to impact the world. Through struggles and hard work to balance it all in college, I decided to graduate and have a nonprofit career where I could make an impact and “change the world. Once I graduated and started my first job as an advocate in a domestic violence organization, I couldn’t make enough money to make ends meet with a small child. Very quickly, I had to ask for help, and many of the social service organizations I asked for help from were also places where I was referring my clients at the battered women’s shelter. It was a humbling experience asking for help, and I was only sometimes only sometimes treated well or fairly. What it taught me was the power of dignity in getting help. I figured out that what I wanted to do for the rest of my career was help create and grow organizations that treat people who need help with dignity and find ways to connect people with barriers to the services and resources they need.
Thanks for sharing that. Please tell us more about your work.
It’s a simple notion: people who are sick should not be without food. Yet, every day, our neighbors with life-threatening illnesses find themselves unable to shop or cook — and, often, without the support network to help. That’s where we come in. Open Arms of Minnesota is a nonprofit organization that prepares and delivers medically tailored meals at no cost to critically ill Minnesotans and their loved ones. Our registered dietitians and in-house chefs create delicious, medically tailored menus using fresh and organic ingredients whenever possible. Through the support of a loving community of donors and volunteers, we harvest, cook, and deliver nutritious, made-from-scratch meals directly to our clients. We are building a community of kindness at Open Arms, and our clients feel that. Each delivery of medically tailored meals sends a message of hope and love to a client who might be isolated or struggling that day. At Open Arms, we believe that food is medicine, and there’s always room for one more at our table.
- Our Mission: We nourish our clients and build community by providing food as medicine.
- Our Purpose: We create an inclusive and joyful community to provide high-quality medically tailored meals, nutrition education, and hope to our clients.
Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?
I wanted to be a marine biologist or write the next great American novel! I liked the ocean, and my dad was a science guy, so that was my path. As an adolescent, I also loved to write and wrote lovely, moody poems and stories. I liked being outside and hanging out with my friends. I was a big sister, and my sister and I have always been close friends.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.openarmsmn.org
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/openarmsmn
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/openarmsmn
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/open-arms-of-minnesota
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/openarmsmn
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/OpenArmsMN
Image Credits
Amy Anderson, Amy Anderson Photography
