Northside Neighbors wants to reduce diabetes in north Tulsa, where the disease is more prevalent than in other parts of town. Through a partnership with FreshRx Oklahoma, the group is working to solve a problem that’s mostly been driven by a lack of access to fresh food and income disparities.
The year-long program currently serves 125 north Tulsans, but will be expanded to help an additional 150 thanks to a $17 million state grant and led by the Mayor’s Office of Health and Well-Being. FreshRx also recently expanded in east Tulsa, where it will be offered in Spanish for the first time.
Program participants have access every two weeks to free fresh fruits and vegetables grown by more than a dozen small and mid-sized farmers in northeastern Oklahoma, plus cooking and nutrition classes.
In the next phase, the program will serve children and families living in Northside Neighbors’ service area, which includes Walt Whitman and Hawthorne elementary schools.
Executive director Reggie Ivey said the grant represents a transformational investment for north Tulsa.
“The expansion of FreshRx, combined with support for urban agriculture and food access infrastructure, addresses food insecurity at multiple levels — from prevention and chronic disease reversal to local food production and neighborhood-level access,” Ivey said.
“This is about more than food; it’s about restoring health equity, building community wealth, and ensuring north Tulsa families have consistent access to fresh, affordable, culturally relevant foods,” he said.
FreshRx founder Erin Martin said the program has saved the state’s Medicaid program an estimated $9 million in health care costs since its inception in 2021. In addition to locally grown fruits and vegetables, participants attend nutrition and cooking classes to learn how to use the food to change their eating habits.
It’s something that’s caught the eye of state legislators, too. In 2025, they passed the Food is Medicine Act directing the Oklahoma Health Care Authority to seek federal approval to expand nutrition services for SoonerCare members with chronic illnesses.
A healthy diet of organic produce has proven to be effective in weight loss and reductions in blood sugar, Martin said. Higher levels can lead to an increased risk for strokes, heart attacks and death.
In some cases, Martin said, participants have experienced a large enough health change that their doctors took them off of some or all diabetes medications.
June Smith Mack, 56, was on the program during 2025. Her doctors said she was pre-diabetic and had been for seven years. Through an improved diet and support of FreshRx, she lost eight pounds and was able to eventually eliminate her medications.
“It’s true, you can reverse Type 2 diabetes,” Mack said. “I’m grateful to have that opportunity.”
You can apply online to join the program as a patient, farmer or provider.
Editor’s note: This story has been corrected to show the FreshRx program is expanding to help an additional 150 people.
