AGENCY UPDATES

Throughout the leadership transition, you will find updates on the process on this page. Check back for the latest news!


We've Hired a New Executive Director

April 3, 2012

Dear friends of Open Arms,

I’m thrilled to be able to share some exciting news with you. The board has chosen Tim Reardon to take the position of executive director at Open Arms.

As you may know, we recently hired Minneapolis-based Chandler Group Executive Search to work with our board-appointed search committee and help us fill the executive director and development director positions. I want to share some background on Tim and why we believe he is a great fit for Open Arms.

Tim’s health and human services experience spans two decades. Most recently, he has been chief executive officer at the Reardon Group, a consultancy that works with local governments and nonprofits to improve services and conserve resources. He is also an adjunct professor in the Graduate School of Management at the University of St. Thomas.

Prior to that, he served as executive director of The Bridge for Youth, a $3.75 million nonprofit dedicated to helping youth in crisis with shelter, support and independent living skills. He was also the executive director of the Alliance for Families and Children, a federally funded, multi-sector initiative to reform education and social programs for children and families in Minnesota.

Tim also brings international experience, having spent nearly ten years directing the Programa San Francisco de Asis, an organization in Peru that provides cleft palate surgery for children.

Tim is a long-time Minnesotan, committed to the health of our community. In visiting with him, it became clear that he is driven by a desire to help people. He has a strong track record of leadership in both fund raising and agency operations, and he also brings a passion for social justice. That combination makes him the right person to lead Open Arms toward its vision: a world of abundance, where no one goes hungry.

We shared our recently completed, five-year strategic plan with Tim, and I’m pleased to say he expressed strong enthusiasm for the direction of Open Arms. He is ready to “merge into” the plan, bringing his leadership and vision to the process as staff and board roll out the initiatives that will bring our strategic directives to life.

Tim starts at Open Arms on April 30. We’d like to invite you to welcome him in person by attending an open house at Open Arms from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on May 3, 2012. We’ll provide coffee and snacks – you bring the warmth that has always made Open Arms such a wonderful place to be.

In the meantime, Tim will be working with the search committee and key staff to choose a new development director. It’s a dynamic time for Open Arms. As we look to the future with great hope, we are so grateful to have your support.

Best,

Tim Meyer
President, Board of Directors

P.S. For more information about Tim Reardon, please see the press release on our website. If you have any other questions, please feel free to give me a call at 612-805-6546.