Dear Friends,

Happy new year!

Today I’m thrilled to begin my tenure as President & CEO of God’s Love We Deliver. With the support of our tremendous community, I’m fortunate to lead the fifth administration in our nearly 38-year history. I’m committed to continuing the great work begun by Ganga Stone and Jane Best and carried on by Kathy Spahn, Nancy Mahon and Karen Pearl.

For those of you who don’t know me, my name is David Ludwigson. I have been involved with God’s Love for over two decades, the last 16 years on staff as Vice President & Chief Development Officer. Before that, I spent 10 years as a volunteer and donor, bringing my colleagues from Ford Motor Company to volunteer and securing grants to support our work. God’s Love holds a truly special place in my heart. We have accomplished so much, and I am excited for what we will achieve going forward, together!

There is much to do, but we are lucky to have an extraordinary team here, including our wonderful volunteers. And I am thrilled that Karen Pearl will stay on as Special Advisor to me.

To replace myself, I’m excited to announce that Stephen Covello, who has worked in Major Gifts for many years (and in the Volunteer Department before that) will move to the Chief Development Officer role. Also, Lauren Jacobs, who currently works in Development, will become my Executive Assistant and Manager of Special Projects.

Before I go, I want to give one more shout out to Karen Pearl as she moves into her new role. Over the past 17 years, we’ve reached tremendous milestones, serving more clients more meals than ever, while our budget has grown from $9 million to $30 million; our staff from 50 to 160; and our volunteers from 5,000 to 17,000. Karen led the creation of the “food is medicine” movement, which is making a difference for millions of people every day. I am grateful to have Karen as a colleague and a friend, who truly leads with conviction and kindness.

There is so much on the horizon. This month, we will move in to our second home, the Northern Dispensary. This year, we will cook and home-deliver more than 3 million medically tailored meals. We will welcome more volunteers, deliver to new communities, and continue to make enhancements to our ever-evolving program. We will move with urgency because being sick and hungry is a crisis that demands an urgent response. And we will continue to center equity in all that we do.

It has been nearly 17 years since we last saw a management change at this level, and we’ve worked hard to put a solid plan together to ensure a smooth transition. Building on our strong foundation, I’m looking forward to sharing exciting news with you in the months ahead about the next chapter in the God’s Love story.

If you have questions or comments please pop me a message at david_ludwigson@glwd.org. I’d love to hear from you.

Thank you for your continued support!

With gratitude,

 

 

David Ludwigson
President & CEO