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Welcome to Open Your
Heart
Greetings!
During this seasonal time of giving to one
another, I would like to share with you a
message from Mike Fratto, one of the
founders of Open Your Heart. Mike said it
well in his holiday message:
"We as Americans recently celebrated our
national holiday of Thanksgiving. We have many
things to be thankful for. Unfortunately there are
also many of our family and friends who find it
hard to give thanks this year. Many families are
still missing loved ones who are stationed in
areas of conflict. Others are dealing with the
loss of their homes or the loss of their jobs. It
may take many months for the economy to rebound. I
am asking you to make a donation to Open Your
Heart to the Hungry and Homeless, one of my
favorite charities that serves people most in
need."
Mike devoted countless hours volunteering
for Open Your Heart to the Hungry and Homeless for
many years as President of the Board. He continues
to spread the word on behalf of people who need a
helping hand with food or shelter.
Yes,
in these turbulent times, it is easy to withdraw
and say but "What can I do?" In these uncertain
times, a contribution to Open Your Heart can do a
lot! A gift of any amount can make a world of
difference to a person who just needs a hearty
meal or a warm place to stay for the night.
Instead of buying more "stuff' this holiday
season, consider making a contribution to Open
Your Heart in honor of your loved one. You will
both feel good about helping someone else. Your
donation is tax deductible. For online giving,
click here. Or mail your
contribution to Open Your Heart at 121 East 7th
Place, St. Paul, MN 55101.
Thank you for "Opening Your Heart to the
Hungry and Homeless" this holiday season and best
wishes for a peaceful New Year!
Arna Yetter
Executive
Director
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Agency Spotlight: Minnesota
Assistance Council for Veterans, St. Paul,
Minnesota 
Open Your Heart to the Hungry
and Homeless has donated $10,000 to the Minnesota
Assistance Council for Veterans, for the purchase
and installation of a new roof at its transitional
housing facility in St. Cloud and a replacement
furnace for its facility in Richfield.
MACV's mission is to provide assistance
throughout Minnesota to positively motivated
veterans and their families who are homeless or
experiencing other life crises. It provides a
spectrum of supportive and low-income housing
programs and employement programs to promote
financial independence. No veteran is ever turned
away.
The organization has offices and
programs in the Twin Cities, Duluth and Mankato
and is expanding to other areas, such as
Rochester, Brainerd and Moorhead.
For more
information, click here to visit Minnesota
Assistance Council for Veterans.
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Agency Spotlight: The
Salvation Army, Duluth, Minnesota
A grant of $2,548 from
Open Your Heart to the Hungry and Homeless will
enable The Salvation Army in Duluth to purchase a
commercial refrigerator for the food shelf.
Internationally, The Salvation Army, a
Christian faith-based organization, has over 9,600
service centers to assist people in more than 100
countries. In the U.S., The Salvation Army
supports almost 6 million people during the
holiday season alone.
The Duluth branch is
part of The Salvation Army Northern Division,
which serves Minnesota and North Dakota.
For more information visit The
Salvation Army Duluth.
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Did You Know?
Fact of the
Month
Indicators of the economy's impact on
charities: For the first nine months of the year,
even before the October market crash, the McKnight
Foundation saw its asses fall $700 million, from
$2.3 billion to $1.6 billion; the Bush
Foundation's investments dropped from $900 million
to $800 million; and the Northwest Area
Foundation's investments declined from $480
million to $410 million. (Source: Star Tribune,
November 21, 2008)
Quote of the Month:
"We have to make something good happen. There
are 30,000 people who die from hunger every day;
18,000 of them are kids. We can't let that
happen." - Rita Juhl, founder of the Rice Dinner
Project, which encourages families to serve rice
for dinner once a month and donate what would have
been spent on a regular dinner to an agency that
feeds the poor, as quoted in The Star Tribune,
November 22, 2008.
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| A New Year, A New Look, A
Renewed Mission
Open Your Heart to
the Hungry and Homeless newsletter has a new look! Plus,
if you have visited our website
recently, you've noticed that our online
presentation is new and improved. For one, check out our
new Forum
pages. Join our community as we seek to alleviate hunger
and homelessness.
Our new logo and website have been made
possible through a generous grant from the Otto Bremer
Foundation. Because of this funding, we are able
to reach more people to raise awareness about the needs
of hungry and homeless people throughout Minnesota.
Heartfelt thanks go to the Bremer
Foundation with its long tradition of supporting
communities throughout Minnesota!
Read more news from OYH here. |
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