A Place at the Table

There are many important decisions made every day at God’s Love, and every decision affects our clients. Who approves the menu? When do deliveries happen? Why is the sauce so spicy, or not spicy enough? We want the sauce to be just right. So, we make sure our clients are in the room where it happens. We call it our Client Community Advisory Board. The Advisory Board meets four times a year, with ten clients, longtime volunteer Sueanne Kim, and a few staff members who report on recent programmatic changes. While we receive informal feedback from our clients all year long, the Advisory Board ensures that our clients’ voices are represented in our institutional decision-making. Our team takes client feedback to heart. “It’s so important to make sure that clients have a say in our program,” says Janine Dietz, Manager of Client Services at God’s Love, who helps oversee the Advisory Board. The Advisory Board has helped with many changes to our program.For example, we recently looked into changing our packaging, but before making the change, we brought various samples to the Advisory Board. With our clients’ input, we learned which packages were easiest to open for someone with limited dexterity. Many voices in the populations we serve often go unheard. We are proud to have a Client Community Advisory Board that ensures clients’ perspectives at God’s Love are both understood, and honored.