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Over the past year, God’s Love We Deliver has cooked and delivered over 4.3 million meals to 16,000 clients, children and caregivers. This nonprofit is New York City’s sole provider of medically tailored meals for those living with life-altering illnesses. God’s Love has been supporting clients free of charge since 1985, and has grown 50% in the past two years. With the help of the community, God’s Love is able to provide life-saving healthy meals to people living with more than 200 different diagnoses in all five boroughs of the city.
For people who are sick, good nutrition means fewer hospital stays, fewer visits to the emergency room and a lower risk of having to move into a long-term care facility. This means they can live where they are happiest — their homes! In fact, patients on a medically tailored diet report 70% fewer visits to the emergency room. Good nutrition supports lower healthcare costs, better health outcomes, and happier patients. For this reason, God’s Love home-delivers thousands of medically tailored meals every day. Each meal is customized to meet the complex medical needs of people living with cancer, kidney disease, HIV, diabetes, and other illnesses.
Addressing food and nutrition insecurity is top priority for God’s Love We Deliver, so clients receive ongoing nutrition assessments, education, and counseling to ensure they get the support they need. All meals and nutrition services are always free of charge to clients – and full of love!
With the help of thousands of volunteers, God’s Love will provide nearly 5 million medically tailored meals this year for those who are sick and hungry in New York City. New volunteers are always welcome to come help share love and nourishment for those in need!
Meet Antonia
Antonia came to the U.S. from the Dominican Republic at 19. Now 63, she was recently diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.
“My mom was diabetic,” she said. “I have two sisters, and they both have diabetes — so it runs in my family.”
Being familiar with the illness, Antonia was well aware of the importance of a proper diet. After she received her diagnosis, she tried her best to eat healthier meals, but her blood glucose levels were still too high. On her limited budget, it was difficult to afford the fresh fruits and vegetables that she needed in her diet. She was concerned and needed to search for alternative options. “If I don’t have my health,” she said, “it’s hard for me to be confident that I’m going to live a long life.”
Turning to a representative from EmblemHealth, a non-profit health insurer serving New York communities, she discovered the God’s Love We Deliver medically tailored meal program. The representative explained that Antonia’s meals would be customized by a God’s Love Registered Dietitian Nutritionist for her diabetes diagnosis to help lower her blood sugar levels. She would be provided meals with fresh vegetables, healthy grains, low-fat meat and fish, all at no cost.
After three months on the God’s Love program, Antonia said her doctor congratulated her on her progress, noting that her blood sugar had dropped into the normal range. Thanks to Antonia’s diet, her A1C levels dropped from 8 to 6 in just a few months, enabling her to reduce her medication from two pills to one. Antonia mentioned that her doctor said, “Tell God’s Love to keep sending those meals because you are doing great!”
God’s Love was thrilled to hear of Antonia’s success with her health markers and her gratitude for the program. “God’s Love makes me feel important. They sent me a hand-drawn card and a homemade birthday cake for my birthday. They said I could have a little sugar on my birthday! The well wishes meant so much. You feel like someone is taking care of you, and that means everything.”
If you or someone you know is living with a chronic illness and struggling to shop or cook, they can contact God’s Love, and start receiving meals that heal, delivered with love! To show your support, please consider donating or volunteering to help God’s Love We Deliver continue to make a difference in the lives of those in need.