Heart of Nashville
Advancing Health Through Food, Care, and Community
Heart of Nashville is Nashville's first Wellness Opportunity Zone, bringing together healthcare providers, nonprofits, public agencies, researchers, and community leaders to improve health outcomes in North Nashville through coordinated, community-based care.
Convened by NashvilleHealth through the Nashville Wellness Collaborative and launched with a $1 million investment from the Metro Government of Nashville, the initiative unites 20 organizations around a shared belief: that lasting health is shaped not only in clinics, but also in neighborhoods, kitchens, parks, and communities.
Together, partners are addressing the root causes of chronic disease by connecting healthcare with nutritious food, transportation, green space, and other essential community resources, demonstrating what becomes possible when care is designed around people rather than systems.
The Nashville Food Project serves as Heart of Nashville's lead food and nutrition partner. Working alongside Matthew Walker Comprehensive Health Center, the initiative's clinical anchor, The Nashville Food Project prepares scratch-made, heart-healthy meals, integrates Produce Rx prescriptions into patient care plans, and co-leads the development of ANCHOR, a permanent, resident-led community food center designed to strengthen neighborhood food access for years to come.
Today, Heart of Nashville serves 245 adults between the ages of 18 and 97 living in ZIP codes 37208, 37218, and 37209, all managing uncontrolled hypertension. Meals are prepared in The Nashville Food Project's commercial kitchen with the support of dedicated volunteers and delivered to patients through our partnership with DoorDash, helping ensure nutritious food reaches people where they are.
At its core, Heart of Nashville demonstrates what becomes possible when healthcare, nutritious food, and community infrastructure work together. It is a model rooted in partnership, one that supports healthier individuals while strengthening the systems and relationships that help communities thrive.
Current Data (196 patients with eligible baseline and follow-up readings, as of September 2025):
7,100+ heart-healthy meals provided | 4,924 meals delivered home via DoorDash | 1,050+ lbs. fresh produce distributed | +24% more patients with normal blood pressure | -26% fewer patients in Stage 2 hypertension | 33% improved by at least one hypertension stage
Community & Systems Integration
Heart of Nashville succeeds because no partner tries to do everything and each partner focuses on their core competency. NashvilleHealth convenes the Collaborative and provides backbone organizational support. Matthew Walker Comprehensive Health Center serves as the clinical anchor: enrolling patients, managing care coordination, and providing primary care, pharmacy support, and behavioral health services. Senior Ride Nashville ensures patients can reach appointments. Metro Parks provides fitness access at Hadley Park. Meharry Medical College, Belmont University, The Sycamore Institute, and the Belmont Data & AI Collaborative contribute data and evaluation capacity that tracks outcomes and informs replication.
TNFP supports the food and nutrition strategy. Our kitchen team prepares heart-healthy meals using approximately 80% recovered or donated ingredients — connecting Heart of Nashville to TNFP's food recovery infrastructure. TNFP volunteers are essential, supporting meal production and packing at the scale the initiative demands. Produce sourcing flows through TNFP's Community Agriculture Network and regional farm relationships.
Together, this model directly contributes to a more coordinated, less fragmented city food system — demonstrating what aligned, multi-sector action can achieve at the neighborhood level.
North Nashville deserves lasting infrastructure, not just programs. Help us build it. Healthcare and civic partners can integrate community-based food access into care models and explore replicating this framework in other neighborhoods. Funders can invest in TNFP's food and nutrition role within Heart of Nashville and in the development of ANCHOR. Volunteers power the meal preparation that makes this work possible. Join us in building a healthier North Nashville.