A Recipe for Hope: Chef Tiffany Cooks Up Seasonal Magic
November 25, 2025
With Chef Tiffany Williams in the kitchen, GMHC’s lunch attendance has doubled over the past year – a testament to how much clients love her food.
With Chef Tiffany Williams in the kitchen, GMHC’s lunch attendance has doubled over the past year – a testament to how much clients love her food.
When GMHC’s senior management team saw that the government shutdown would cut off SNAP benefits to over 1,000 clients on Nov. 1, the agency quickly responded to keep them fed.
For Meals and Wellness Program Coordinator Nick Byrne, the Monday through Thursday lunch service in GMHC’s dining rooms is a place of community for both clients and volunteers – and a nucleus for connection to additional services.
These are stressful times for GMHC’s clients, says Director of Client Wellness and Meals Services Donna Pine. For that reason, wellness and meals services have always been at the core of our work for people living with HIV. “I’ve made my career here, because I believe everybody should be treated like a human being, no matter their walk of life,” says Pine, on marking her 25th year at GMHC.
GMHC’s Meals Program has already served over 3,000 hot, nutritious lunches to clients since expanding lunch service to four days per week in mid-November and switching from a caterer to an in-house kitchen staff.
In welcome news to clients, GMHC has reopened our dining room for lunch twice a week, after having to suspend this beloved service due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Participation has grown rapidly since June, when the agency started serving lunch on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.