Open M Foundation

The mission of OPEN M, a Christian ministry, is to provide pathways out of poverty for all by feeding the hungry, caring for the sick, and strengthening the community.

Opportunity Parish Ecumenical Neighborhood Ministry was formed in 1968, at a time of poverty, crime, riots, and war. In Akron, longstanding neighborhoods were being destroyed, and white residents were fleeing to the suburbs. Into that chaos, four churches came together to establish an urban ministry in one of Akron’s hardest-hit neighborhoods. Calvary Evangelical United Brethren Church and Main Street Methodist Church took $20,000 provided by their conferences, and began ministering to people via backyards and front porches. St. Paul’s Lutheran Church and Wooster Avenue Christian Church joined the effort, rounding out OPEN M’s original Covenant Churches.