My wife and I visited Open Hand Atlanta to volunteer our time for a couple of hours to prep meals. Open Hand provides nutritional meals for those with chronic diseases, such as AIDS/HIV, different forms of cancer, etc. These nutritional meals promote and prolong healthier way of life. Once you arrive and sign in, you'll be taken to a waiting room area, where Open Hand staff gives you a rundown of their history and what their mission is. You also get the rules of the prep room and are gifted a one of a kind hairnet, plastic apron, and men with facial hair gets face masks. No jewelry may be at any time. Rings, necklaces, earrings, facial piercings, watches, etc. can NOT be worn. There are different things that you can do at this space, but I wanted to do meal prep. We washed our hands and grabbed plastic gloves. Keep in mind, the gloves are different sizes. The meal prep was like an assembly line. The meal we prepped was Beef Stroganoff on Noodles with Green Beans. With a scale, the first person weighed the appropriate number for the noodles, the second person weighed the right number of beef stroganoff, and the third person weighed the right number for green beans. There is then a fourth person who wipes off any excess food from around the rim of the food container. This is important so the plastic cover will seal appropriately. It's then put in this contraption that holds multiple containers and a person press seals it and puts it to the side. This is definitely quite a process, but once you get into the flow of it, it becomes easier. Some people make it a challenge against another group to see who can make the most meals. Side note: THIS PLACE IS FREEZING! The ENTIRE BUILDING IS COLD! Bring a jacket or hoody. Overall, this is a great place to come with a group or by yourself and do some charitable services. Fortunately, we came with a large group of my wife's coworkers, so we were able to knock out over 2,500 meals which was awesome! I'd definitely come back. read more

Open Hand Atlanta - Community Service/Non-Profit Near Me - Atlanta, Georgia

I volunteered at Open Hand two weeks ago (Saturday, July 22, 2017) and had a lot of fun. I didn't know what to expect as far as working conditions, the general environment, and exactly what we would be doing. Would I be in some freezing cold meat locker? Would I be inside an insanely hot warehouse? Would I be breaking my already broken back moving heavy objects around? Would I be doing some mundane task for hours and be bored out of my mind? Fortunately, the answer to all those questions was no. I went with a big group to celebrate someone's birthday (a neat idea). Half of us did meal packing and the other half did market basket packing. I signed up for meal packing. Our meal packing session involved packing meals into bags and portioning food into individual containers (think frozen TV dinners). The food was already cooked and just needed to be heated up to be eaten. Market basket packing involves packing nonperishable foods. In this case, the food wasn't cooked and the recipients would need to cook it themselves. We signed up to work from 1pm to 4pm. Each of us had to register on Open Hand's website. After registering and reserving our spots, we received confirmation emails with information, reminders, and dress code requirements. One of the dress code requirements in my confirmation email said, "Long pants are preferred. Skirts or dresses must be shin length." I wore shorts. When standing, those shorts touched the top of my knees. My girlfriend, who also signed up for meal packing, wore shorts too. Her shorts were shorter. She ended up getting moved to market basket packing because of the length of her shorts. This wasn't a big deal, but the dress code requirements listed in the confirmation email should have been more clear about shorts or simply just said that long pants are required for meal packing. There was at least one other person in our meal packing group with knee-length shorts. When you arrive to Open Hand, the volunteer entrance is clearly marked. Each volunteer must sign in and sign out using a computer just inside the entrance. We arrived right around 1pm, checked in, and were ushered into an orientation room. The orientation was quick, about 10 minutes. A short video about Open Hand was played and then we got some in-person instruction. After that, we were whisked to our volunteer work areas. For meal packing, we had to wear hair nets and aprons. First, we helped prepare bags to place meals in, then we moved into the meal packing work area. This was a cool, clean room with various tables and assembly lines. One group was already sealing TV dinner trays when we arrived. We washed our hands and helped assemble bags with four meals in them: Monday lunch, Monday dinner, Tuesday lunch, and Tuesday dinner with cornbread and condiments (ketchup and mustard). It was pretty easy. Each person was assigned to place one or two items into each bag and pass it down. I was responsible for the ketchup and mustard. After a bag had four meals, cornbread, and condiments, it was tied and placed on a tray which was later stacked and carted off. We assembled 126 of these Monday-Tuesday meal bags. Two of our meal packing group were broken off and sent to the cornbread station where they individually bagged and sealed cornbread. The cornbread was already cooked and cut. After assembling the meal bags, we took a short break in the break room and then were called back into the meal packing room for another job. This time, we had to portion food into TV dinner trays which would later be sealed. This task was harder than the last because we had to handle food directly with our hands (wearing gloves of course) and measure correct portion sizes using scales. We packed 285 meal trays filled with chicken, mushroom risotto, and peas and pearl onions. The hands of the people scooping and portioning out the risotto and peas got tired. I helped a little bit with the peas and organizing and stacking the meal trays on bigger trays, but I mostly was responsible for placing a piece of chicken on top of the risotto. We ended up spending almost our full 3-hour allotment at Open Hand. The market basket packing group ended up finishing early, in under 1.5 hours. Volunteer Services Manager Julie Barwig was the person who oversaw our group. In the meal packing room, Andre led us for the meal bag packing and Shameka led us for the meal tray portioning. Everyone was nice and friendly. I enjoyed the experience so much that I'm now considering signing up to do meal delivery. Open Hand's mission statement: "Open Hand helps people prevent or better manage chronic disease through Comprehensive Nutrition Care, which combines home-delivered meals and nutrition education as a means to reinforce the connection between informed food choices and improved quality of life." The campus is located in the industrial Armour neighborhood of Atlanta near SweetWater Brewing Company and the Armour Yard rail yard on the southern edge of Buckhead. read more

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Open Hand Atlanta preparing, packaging & delivering over 5,500 healthy meals each day throughout metro-Atlanta to those who might otherwise go without. Fabulous day at giving a hand to my community ... and having fun!!! This place has a parking lot. Easy to locate. Very clean facility. Clear and to the point instructions. No nonsense attitude when it comes to cleanliness and portion control/ nutrition when packaging/labeling food for their various targeted audience. Keeping in mind, Open Hand delivers meals to various folks who may have dietary restrictions due to certain health conditions (example: diabetes/ cancer/ Aids|hiv/ hypertension etc.). Once you sign up to the website and sit through an easy orientation meeting of how, when, what & where, you will be able to register as often as you like and give a hand. Up to date they have delivered over 30 million meals to people in our city who are chronically/ terminally ill. This place is my new volunteer obsession!, which usually means it's not a one stop/day thing for me lol. I fell upon this place through a community team work day with colleagues. I am so grateful!! With in minutes I knew this place was legit with a real goal to making a difference in the local community. read more

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It's been some time since I've been wanting to give a helping hand, and I finally found an organization that had a great registration and sign up process that allowed me to help right away. You simply register on their website http://www.openhandatlanta.org/ and sign up for their available slots. It's broken up into 3 categories; food prepping, packing, and delivery. Today I did food packing with a group of 11 other volunteers. I was pretty surprised that majority of the volunteers were groups of family that brought their little kids. Teaching kids to help others is an awesome lesson and was pretty admirable of the parents. The location of the facility is one block away from the Sweetwater Brewery. You can tell right away with the Open Hand vans all parked in the lot. Come through the second entrance door and sign in on the computer. Once signed in, the coordinator will lead you to the room where you put your aprons and hair nets. They also offer a locker to place your belongings/valuable that will be locked. Once you get into your wardrobe, the coordinator will ask groups to take turns in washing their hands and place gloves. Inside the kitchen, there are 3 conveyor belts, which the volunteers worked on 2 of them. My bf and I got to label and stack into the racks. Others got to scoop and place the food into the trays. Labeling was pretty fun, though non stop because you're racing against a machine lol. We packed and labeled around a thousand in total and it was an awesome group effort. Time flew by so quickly and the music in the background helped tremendously, not to mention the great staff. It's amazing how much food is made and prepped here. Though we only packed, can't think how much work goes into cooking all this food, that looked pretty good. Today was eventful and I did leave with my heart growing x10. This is an awesome organization that provides thousands of food on a weekly basis to those that have chronic illnesses. Being that it was our first time, one thing I did wish that the staff told was a bit more about the organization or I guess I could have asked as well. Anyways, will come back again with others! Oh and don't forget to sign out as you're leaving~ And couple of tips, though the website will tell you when you sign up but, no open toe shoes, no accessories of any kind, and no sleeveless shirts. It is pretty chilly in the kitchen so if you get cold easily, wear long sleeve and they will provide you sleeve covers. Lastly, I strongly recommend you don't come on an empty tummy. 3 hours of work surely makes you hungry and it may put you in a hangry mood afterwards if you didn't eat anything in the morning =) Just sayin. read more

Open Hand Atlanta - Community Service/Non-Profit Near Me - Atlanta, Georgia

Open Hands meals they deliver to seniors is the we worst meals ever. Give something we know what we are eating. On your menu it says, Tacos, Tortillas, Steak. Hamburgers we dont get any of that. If you gone be the national meal for seniors give us something we can eat! Dont just throw something at us we dont know what it is! It isthe worst thing you ever tasted! read more

As the awesome David K. said, "I can't say enough good things about this organization." Ditto. We delivered meals together sometime ago, and last year my Junior League placement was with them, mostly packaging meals; I enjoyed both of those things. I'm taking a break from working right now and one of my activities is to do some kind of volunteer work three or four times a week. I have gotten suggestions from others, and am interested in a few dog-related organizations, but Open Hand tugged at my heart as always. David and I decided to reconnect there again today; he had mentioned that they have need for folks who are good with computers to work in their office. I was game! It was cool doing something different for them - under instruction from the same awesome staff I've previously met- and I really enjoyed my task: using a neat little software program to compile nutrition info for a slew of their recipes used to make the food they prepare in house to provide to people. I had to dig into my slightly rusty menu for a few conversions (when 1/8 tsp of something wasn't an available option in the drop down menu, I had to figure out how to quantify it . . . and what exactly is a "pinch" when a "dash" (listed as 1/16 tsp isn't listed) . . .etc!). So now OH has a few nutrition lists to pair with each recipe and its instructions - cool! David helped with packing again and was sweet talked into a short delivery route. Both of us had a nice morning and got a little chance to catch up to boot! I really can't recommend spending time here enough to anyone! read more

So I decided that during this health crisis "covid 19" I wanted to do something to help the community other than sit at home for how ever long my job wanted mandated. I heard about this non profit through my girlfriend and decided to do some volunteering. The registration process was relatively easy. I set up my account through the Open Hands Atlanta website.. There were various options to serve, I choose meal preparation. It probably took all of 3 minutes to set up an account and pick a date and time to volunteer. When I arrive on my slotted day, I could tell that things were kinda hectic..I learned that the normal operation Ooen Hands Atlanta was affected by Covid 19 and all of the governmental recommendations and mandates. So what would have been a smooth operation had a few minor bumps but nothing that stopped the mission of getting food to those in need. I actually ended up helping prep boxes of goods which was cool also..i think I will try delivery of food on my next volunteer day. Overall the staff was very friendly and accommodating and knowledgeable!!! Way to go Open Hands!!! read more

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I started volunteering at Open Hand Atlanta around last year. There's multiple jobs you can volunteer for such as meal packing, food delivery, administration assistant, etc. It's a very easy process, all you do is sign up online on their website. Upon showing up at the facility, you will sign in on a computer then if you are brand new you will have a short class before volunteering so you can learn what to wear and what not, put on gloves, aprons and beard mask so you can prevent from hair contaminating the food in the kitchen. I usually volunteer for the meal packing position where you will be packing meals for about 2 hours for people who have dietary restrictions or just people in need. I find this a great opportunity to give back to our community. This company really relies on volunteers helping in the kitchen and they truly appreciate everything. They also have group sign up options so you can volunteer with your school, church group or work event. Anyways I definitely recommend for you to check it out! :) read more

A Thursday morning well spent at Open Hand Atlanta. This was our first time volunteering at Open Hand Atlanta, it will NOT be our last time. We loved the experience and the opportunity to give back to a community we extremely love. We signed up for the Morning Culinary volunteer opportunity - this meant we were actually in the kitchen cooking and helping out the staff. We laid out chicken breasts onto trays for cooking and then made 400 pounds of macaroni and cheese - that will touch about 1600 people! I was actually a little sore the next day from stirring and shoveling pasta noodles and sauce. A great place to spend some hours and feel good about giving back. I look forward to going back again very very soon. read more

It's Saturday morning and I don't have to go into the office but I do want to do something fun l-i-k-e volunteering. Yaaaaayyyy!! Where should I go... other than Open Hand Atlanta. When I was in college at Spelman, I lead our weekly volunteer initiative when the name was Project Open Hand. So when my office said they wanted to do a collaborative volunteer project this is the first place that came to mind. After this initial meal packing assignment, I have tried to volunteer here at least twice a month depending on my schedule. I even had my friends gift me their time on my birthday to join me in a meal packing project. Last Saturday, was my first time doing meal delivery. We were assigned to a building off Ponce. It was nice to meet some of the meal recipients. If you just want to do something nice and valuable with your time you will enjoy this. If you are down and need a pick me up, try volunteering. It definitely helps with perspective. Happy Volunteering!!!! read more

Open Hand Atlanta - Community Service/Non-Profit Near Me - Atlanta, Georgia

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Amazing organization. They put together healthy meals for those with illnesses, the elderly and those who cannot cook for themselves, at no charge. They run largely on donations of money and food, and volunteerism. You can volunteer to pack meals, which is great with a large group of around 10 (because you'll SPEED through the process) and you can also volunteer to deliver meals, which is something they really need help with. In April, they do Dine Out For Life at many awesome restaurants around Atlanta (and more cities).. where 25% or more of your bill will go towards the business. I'm excited to work further with this awesome organization! read more

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Pros and cons to volunteering here. I've only had an opportunity to come here so far once, but will likely give it another shot for something not in the freezer. Pro is that you can sign up online and choose not only your assignment but your time window. The con is that when you do arrive there's not a lot of "help" for the first timers in figuring out what you are supposed to do or where to go or how to sign in. I was alone and not with a group or anything and it was an evening volunteer opportunity to help out in the freezer with sorting pre-packed meals. The reason this is 4 stars and not 5 is that while I enjoy volunteering, I don't like being taken advantage of. The paid employees took advantage of me and showed me what to do very briefly then left me. I spent the first hour and a half working completely alone while they were off doing whatever else and I had zero guidance. Then when they came back and I had done more than they told me to do, I got "a talkin to" because now they were behind doing their parts. It's not my fault that I actually work hard when I commit to working. They only gave me enough work for maybe 10 minutes, so I picked up the next stack of orders and started to fill them. I would likely do this again but probably during the daytime vs night time hours to see if there's a difference in organization. read more

Volunteering in the kitchen here is super fun and the team is very organized! If it's your first time, they go through an orientation with you so you understand not only what you'll be doing, but who you will be helping. You will be filled with "the feels" and leave your volunteer shift with a sense of gratitude and accomplishment. I highly recommend volunteering here and bringing your friends or co-workers! read more

Best place to volunteer. 3 hours and nice employees and volunteers. Very feel good. Very well run. Allow children for some activities. Great cause to donate to as well. They thank you over and over. read more

Open hand is by far one of my favorite places to volunteer. With this organization you have the option of preparing meals in the kitchen (most popular and fills is quick) or delivering meals (using your own vehicle). The meals go to chronically ill homebound adults. Many of whom may not interact with other people on a regular basis, which is why meal delivery is a great service opportunity. This is a popular organization to volunteer with. Plan months in advance to serve here in the kitchen, you can plan just a week or two out for meal delivery. read more

Open Hand Atlanta - Pretty non descriptive building. For your first time here you're more likely to notice the good measure vans in the parking lot. - Community Service/Non-Profit Near Me - Atlanta, Georgia

This Monday our Salon had the opportunity to volunteer for a meal packing session. The Open Hands staff was very helpful and informative. We had an amazing time with their staff and will be back! read more

What a great way to start a Saturday morning! I used to wake up faithfully and drive to Project Open Hand to deliver meals. This NPO is especially close to my heart because you get to connect with the people on your delivery route. After several months, people would be waiting for me at the door with smiles on their faces. Totally rewarding! If you're not up for delivering meals, you can volunteer inside to help prepare the food. read more

Completely coincidentally, I volunteered with Project Open Hand the same weekend as Dad B. I tagged along with a friend of mine who's been doing deliveries for over 10 years, and it was a great experience. I hope to stick around and get a regular route in the new year. My friend is really connected to the people along her route and will stop and talk for a few minutes to each of them. If you want to support them a different way, their business arm is Good Measure Meals (ttp://www.yelp.com/biz/tY2oD_4JzNKtJQj1kVNecw#hrid:6x09GixuAwPLNdg5d7gXJQ), and all of their profits go towards Project Open Hand. read more

I was recently in Atlanta and spent half a day at Open Hand. I was very impressed with everything we encountered. The food quality is truly impressive, the professionalism and commitment from the staff is heartwarming, and the efficiency is incredible. We started out our morning learning about what Open Hand does and how they do it. I have to admit I had never even considered that there were these kinds of places out there. Open Hand provides fresh, nutritionally balanced, meals to people who can't cook for themselves and don't have the support from elsewhere. The meals looked fantastic and are healthy too?! I swear those people are eating better than I am! There was about 30 of us and we were split into two groups. Most went to the kitchen to put meals together. Some of us went to the warehouse to put grocery bags of food together for those deliveries. Our team made 2000+ meals and 200 grocery bags of food in our half day there. This has nothing to do with our competency but everything to do with the efficient process Open Hand has employed. If I lived in Atlanta I'd definitely spend more time volunteering for Open Hand. They said they're looking for volunteers during the week and for delivering food. Delivering food to people in need is a great way to spend a day with your kids and teach them about giving back to the community. read more

If you are looking for somewhere to complete some community service hours, or just feeling like you want to give a little back, look no further! Project Open Hand, now just "Open Hand," is an amazing organization that provides some 2,500 meals a day to people with terminal illnesses and others who rely solely on Open Hand for all of their meals. They also run their own "Gourmet Meal" delivery service for clients who can afford it, allowing them to have their own revenue stream. It is truly an amazing place. On to the volunteering part - the volunteer department here is VERY well-run and organized, just call in and they will set you up immediately! I had to do eight hours of community service so I went here - usually volunteers are tasked with delivering meals to clients (which I have heard is quite fun and rewarding), but I opted to work in-house because it was my driving that led me to having to do this community service in the first place! I had a great time helping the organization run and helping other volunteers getting read to deliver. Groups here can also help actually package the food- music, friends, and volunteering ... it's a great and helpful way to spend a Saturday afternoon! read more

Open Hand is a great charity that addresses an urgent need in Atlanta; access to nutritious food. There are so many people who simply don't have the means to eat healthy food on their own. Maybe they are sick, homebound or have fallen on difficult times. Open Hand delivers nutritious meals right to their doors. When I last volunteered with Open Hand, I was tasked with meal delivery. This means working with at least one other volunteer to drive meals around the ATL area and delivering them to the people on a predetermined list. From my experience, the people coordinating the delivery routes do a really good job of plotting a course that makes sense and providing clear directions to each recipient. Open Hand also needs volunteers to do food preparation and packaging, along with loading/unloading provisions and maintaining the facilities. They partially fund the charity through the "Good Measure Meals" program, which generates revenue by providing well-rounded meals to people through gyms, exercise programs and the like. Actually, the gym that I frequent has partnered with Open Hand for this purpose. I think it's a pretty cool way to help people eat well even when they aren't sick and can afford to purchase their own food. Plus it funds the charity, so people eating "Good Measure Meals" can feel good about themselves for more than one reason! If you are looking for volunteer work that is impactful and fulfilling, I'd recommend contacting Open Hand. They are always seeking new volunteers and are thankful for any help given. It's a well-run program that really makes a difference in peoples' lives. read more

I had such a wonderful feeling from volunteering throught Project Open Hand. My church, Victory in Stn Mtn, has been providing volunteers to this center for, I believe 22 yrs now. Since, I no longer work weekends, I am now able to be involved in a ministry and I chose to be a part of Meals on Wheels. Victory sends volunteers every 1st, 3rd and if there's a 5th Saturday. I am so glad to finally be connected and to be a part of this ministry. The best part of delivering the meals, of course, is just getting all the thanks and displays of appreciation from the recipients. James 2:20 - "...faith without works is dead" read more

I am in desperate need I haven't been out of prison long and I'm needing a motel room please I don't want to be in the cold I have filled application out and bavent heard anything I don't have my license or anything it was left at the jail and now they can't find it I'm at motel 6 Bremen ga in the grace of God somebody plz help me read more

I had the pleasure of volunteering here the other week. I opted to deliver food. Everything was straight forward. Open Hand's staff is energetic and friendly. Food is delivered to the sick and elderly. Great mission! If you are looking for an organization that runs like a well oiled machine, look no further! read more

What a lovely place and organization. I was excited to have my first volunteer experience thanks to Heidi P. for organizing such an event. It's a huge building off of Amour Drive and they have their own parking lot. You can definitely notice their organization's banner on the fence when you pull in. The facility is super clean and they have a lovely staff. Through the organization of Heidi P. we were able to put in 4 hours of volunteer time on a Sunday afternoon preparing meals for their clients. It was a great experience and they have plenty of opportunities to volunteer and are always looking for help so be sure to check out their website for more info.! read more

I can't say enough good things about this organization. They have a long history of providing services to people who can't otherwise help themselves and they continue to do great things. A few years ago I had to complete several hours of community service (believe it or not) and I helped pack meals. To my surprise, I actually enjoyed myself. They have an amazingly organized volunteer department, making it easy to get information and to participate. Now when I have time I help deliver meals and it's awesome. Even though not everyone is home, when you do get the chance to speak with one of the people it makes it all worthwhile. I am proud to say that I have gotten my company involved and almost all of our Atlanta associates will be donating our time there every day this week. I agree with Dad B., this is a great way to get over yourself if you are having a moment of self-loathing or otherwise discouragement. I was really cranky on Thanksgiving and instead of drinking the day away, I woke up early and delivered meals through the afternoon. I had the best Turkey Day, ever. read more

During my final semester at Emory, I took a non-profit class and as part of our grade, we had to volunteer for 40 hours at a non-profit organization and then do a presentation on the chosen place. I chose Open Hand, and I'm very glad I did. It's a great organization dedicated to making and distributing balanced meals to people around Atlanta who have chronic or terminal illnesses,are low income and possibly housebound. Oh, and it's a no-charge to them. The vast majority of the people working there are volunteers: individuals and groups who sign up to come on pre-determined days to either pack meals or drive and deliver them to the homes. And the staff who are employed there full time are a group of great, friendly people who know exactly what they're doing and are happy to show the first-timers how it's done. Since I volunteered very regularly for almost 4 months, I got pretty grooved into the organization and how things are run: I did everything from scooping out servings into the pre-portioned containers, to shrink wrapping the lids on the meals with heating instructions, to adding fruit or pudding cups to lunches, to pushing loaded carts to the freezer area until they were ready to be delivered. One of the coolest things I learned is how Open Hand can provide as many thousands of meals as it does at no cost to the recipients. It has three main sources of income: the government, private and corporate donations, and a secondary meal service called "Good Measure Meals," which are meals made alongside the Open Hand Meals. These meals are different however, in that they are sold to health clubs and weight loss clinics and individuals who want delivered, pre-portioned meals for a profit. Those earnings are then directed back to subsidizing the meals for Open Hand's recipients. I really enjoyed my time volunteering with Open Hand, because I felt like I was making a difference to people who couldn't really help themselves. It was tiring work, but always rewarding when you were done, and the people I worked with couldn't have been nicer. If you're looking for a volunteer opportunity that's a little out of the ordinary, give Open Hand a try - it's a unique place and they always need more help. read more

Open Hand is a fun volunteer opportunity to do with friends, coworkers, or alone. You will leave feeling like you have accomplished something. I volunteered for meal packing, and I look forward to trying some of the other roles. read more

A major part of my Saturday morning routine. So what if it's 8:00 AM? Roll yourself out of bed and come volunteer. I don't drive a route, so I won't speak for the drivers, but you can see from other reviewers that they seem to love the experience, too. I organize and pack the meals that get delivered. There's a core group of really amazing guys who meet every week to do this, and we're always looking for more volunteers! It's quickly become my gay social hour for the week, and I get to give back while I do it - what could be better than that? read more

Very unhappy with Open Hand. Problems with my delivery .I haven't received my meals for one week. Spoke to the Supervisor and nothing has been done. I always get the response they will be delivered today.. I wait and then nothing. read more

Today is Georgia Gives day! Show your support and generosity by giving to Open Hand before midnight tonight! To donate click the link below! https://www.gagivesday.org/c/GGD/a/openhandatlanta read more

What an awesome organization and a great way to give back to the community! I spent three hours here packing food. The work itself is not the toughest of all jobs, but standing of your feet for three constant hours if you are not use to it can be troublesome. We packed food in an assembly line. The meal was comprised of three items and then the person on the end sealed it. It was a very smooth process. If you are looking for a great organization to volunteer sometime with, I would high recommend this place. They also need delivery drivers if you are up to exploring Atlanta! read more

If you enjoy volunteering, then you will love Open Hand. This is my 3rd time volunteering here and all my experience has been very rewarding. This nonprofit organization is a place where they prepare meals base on what the client's needs are. They are very organized group. I worked on the food prep assembly line (where I scoop food portion in a tray kind of remind me of a lean cuisine). We had a leader to give us direction and the rest of the process was easy. If you decided to volunteer for Open Hand here are some suggesting beforehand, call to select a time, NO jewelry including visible body piercing( not allow in the food area). Last must have a kind heart. There are other things that you can do there as well they have data entry. They are currently trying to expand and always need help. read more

We signed up to volunteer to package meals at Open Hand, because I love cooking I always seek out opportunities where I can help out in the kitchen. After a brief orientation, we were asked to put on aprons and hats and head to the kitchen. As we entered and lined up to wash our hands, one of the people in charge came in and said that there is a church group that's coming in to work in the kitchen and that all of us should head next door to help pack bags in the warehouse. Now, I am happy to help with whatever it is, but the organization switched the tasks the last minute, which I thought was very disappointing. I came there because I enjoy cooking and wanted to help with the meal packing, instead we were taken to a dark, cold warehouse to pack bags and put them on pallets. Again, I don't mind helping and I did go and work in the warehouse, BUT this was false advertising in a way. If I knew that the task was going to be switched, I would have worn an old jacket and jeans - clothing appropriate for working in a freezing warehouse. I am very disappointed with how the organization handled the volunteering tasks and would NOT volunteer there again. Just be warned, if you do go, you might end up doing something totally different from what you originally planned. read more

I love open hand; I volunteer once a month. The staff is awesone (Damion) is very helpful!! You feel some much better after volunteering for 4 hours I met a friend there last year and we coordinate our schedules to volunteer together!!! Try it you will love it!! read more