Meals on Wheels still short of goal
By Renee Carey
Published in News on December 9, 2012 1:50 AM
A community project designed to feed 330 senior citizens for three days over the Christmas holiday is not quite at its goal.
The effort to provide the meals came about when Realtor Danny Southerland at Prudential The McMillen Real Estate Group, a Meals on Wheels volunteer himself, heard that there would be a three-day gap when there was no one to deliver the meals because of the Christmas holiday. That is in addition to the two days over the weekend that the service is not available normally. He decided something needed to be done.
So, he helped create a partnership between the realty group and WAGES, which operates the program.
Now, the realty group is asking residents to join with the Meals on Wheels staff, the Goldsboro Youth Council and Prudential The McMillen Real Estate Group to help feed those seniors.
That means funds or food are needed for 990 meals.
So far, the collection has raised $1,000 and about 700 pounds of food, but there is still more needed to hit the goal and to feed all the seniors.
Realtor, broker and office manager Sue Howell said the group chooses community service projects to support all year long. But when the Realtors heard about the Meals on Wheels concerns, they felt they had to get involved.
"A lot of folks depend on this food," she said. "Sometimes they are the only hot meals they get. A lot have no family. This will give them something, some staple foods during those days. Somebody's got to help them."
Meals on Wheels volunteers, with the help of the Goldsboro Youth Council, will assemble special holiday bags Dec. 18 in preparation for delivery in advance of the week of Christmas.
Donations for the bags should be made before Dec. 17.
Mrs. Howell said she and other volunteers figured up the cost and a meal with a main dish, some fruit, crackers and even a holiday treat could be created for about $5 each. Donations of cash will help allow the bulk buying necessary, although any item on the list can be donated to help make sure that there is a special holiday sack for every Meals on Wheels recipient.
Items that are appropriate for the bags include:
* Pop-top cans of vegetable soup or beef stew
* Pop-top cans of Vienna sausages or potted meat
* Pop-top cans or individually packaged (such as plastic cups) of fruit like pears, peaches or fruit cocktail
* Individual boxes of raisins
* Individual packages of hot chocolate
* Individual cans (4 to 6 ounces) or containers of fruit juice
* Individual packages of crackers such as Nabs or saltines
* Individually wrapped cookies
* Individually wrapped candy or candy canes
Donations may be dropped off at the Meals on Wheels office at 601 Royall Ave. or at the Prudential The McMillen Real Estate Group office at 1004 N. Berkeley Blvd.
Checks should be made out to WAGES, with the notation "Meals on Wheels" in the subject line.
For more information on the program's needs, call Brownie Doss, nutrition program administrator, at 919-580-1790. To donate, call Prudential The McMillen Real Estate Group at 919-778-9500 or the Meals on Wheels office.