God’s Love Welcomes the New York Health Foundation and Food Access Leaders

On September 19, God’s Love was proud to host the staff and Board of Directors of the New York Health Foundation, serving as the second site on the Foundation’s day-long program engaging with representative programming from its wide range of grantees.

The group began their visit to God’s Love with a special lunch prepared by Executive Chef Andre Daquigan and the God’s Love kitchen team. With a menu that included our Curried Carrot Soup, Asian Brown Rice and Edamame Salad, Coconut Braised Chicken, and more, guests were able to enjoy the dishes that our kitchen prepares for our ill clients as well as their dependents and caregivers every day. The menu also represented the vast variety of preparations and ingredients that form our medically tailored meal program and enhance health and quality of life for our diverse community of clients.

Chef Andre and God’s Love’s Community Nutrition Educator Katie Leonard, MS, RD, CDN walked the group through each course and their nutritional and clinical underpinning—from the spiced pureed soup providing a delicious lunch for a client regardless of their ability to chew or swallow, to the high protein, low-sodium entrees to support a spectrum of health concerns. As Chef Andre told the group, “We believe that food is medicine, but it doesn’t have to taste like it!”

After our lunch, the Foundation hosted a roundtable conversation with Michael Partis from Red Hook Initiative, Tutu Badaru from GrowNYC, and Kate Janeski and Dorella Walters of God’s Love. Each organization was able to share its journey within the food is medicine field and the new challenges surrounding food access and health and nutrition education. We were then pleased to take the group on a behind-the-scenes tour of the Michael Kors Building’s kitchen, fulfillment space, and rooftop herb garden, where our guests had a chance to see all that goes into producing 16,000 meals per day!

God’s Love thanks the New York Health Foundation for allowing us to host you and your guests, and for all you do to support the health of New Yorkers.  We look forward to continuing our robust partnership.