From pandemic to pandemic, God’s Love will always deliver

Dear Community,

It is hard to believe that we are entering our third year of life with COVID. I have been reflecting on the pandemic and when it first hit our lives. I remember the fear and the uncertainty we all felt. None of us will ever forget how fast the City shut down, the streets emptied, and our friends and family stayed behind closed doors – for weeks, then months, then years.

I am so proud to say that, when the City shut down, God’s Love never did. Overnight, we created new health and safety protocols; we developed socially distant deliveries; we managed all of our volunteer shifts (and created new ones) while working with fewer volunteers. We grew our client base. One weekend in April 2020, we delivered 140,000 shelf-stable meals so our clients would have 2 weeks of nutrition on hand. And so much more.

No matter the challenges and fear COVID brought our way, we were there for our clients. As an Essential Services Provider, we never missed a single delivery. In fact, you could say that we “turned up the gas.”

Since those first terrible days, we continued to innovate to meet the ever-changing needs of the people who count on us for meals that heal: the home-delivered, medically tailored meals our clients so desperately need because they cannot shop or cook for themselves and their families.

This past year, as we navigated Omicron and shifts in mandates and health protocols, we’ve done even more. We have reached new populations by creating a special meal and nutrition program for New Yorkers with gestational diabetes and another program for veterans with PTSD.

We are advancing health equity by targeting our outreach to systemically neglected and under-resourced neighborhoods. We have grown our sustainability efforts, sourcing antibiotic-free chicken, grass-fed beef, and wild-caught fish. And we are doing everything we can to make our menu as tailored as possible, introducing a GI-friendly diet, new culturally-appropriate recipes, and so much more.

To accomplish all of this, God’s Love is growing. In just a few short months, some of our staff will move in to our second building – the historic Northern Dispensary in the West Village. We’re so glad this new location is just a short walk from our SoHo headquarters, the Michael Kors Building, so we can go back and forth as needed.

Our volunteer shifts are in full swing – and we are grateful for the time our volunteers spend with us taking care of our clients. If you haven’t done so recently, we hope you’ll come work with us – and bring your corporate and community groups! There are rewarding projects for everyone.

And while we celebrate all that we have done – thanks to all of you – we know there is still so much more to do. New COVID diagnoses are being made every day and our world is permanently altered by the presence of the pandemic in our lives. Our clients have been able to count on God’s Love every step of the way during COVID, and they will always be able to do so.

Thank you, from the bottom of my heart. Our clients know they are not alone. They have all of us. You are saving lives and bringing dignity, hope and love to thousands of people at the hardest time they have ever faced.

With gratitude,

Karen