West Allegheny Featured Stories

   
 
 
 
Hungry for Volunteers, Meals on Wheels Delivers
By Pat Jennette
 

Imagine being in your home alone, perhaps widowed or disabled. You are unable to drive to a restaurant or to a grocery store. Due to disability or illness, you are unable to cook for yourself. Days can be lonely and long for those in such circumstances. Meals on Wheels can help.

   Patty Davidson, development director for the nonprofit agency, Lutheran Service Society, says that her organization oversees many of the area Meals on Wheels programs, including the West Hills Meals on Wheels.

   Just recently, however, they were forced to cut services to the Meals on Wheels program serving the West Allegheny communities when its board did not renew its contract with the Allegheny County Department of Aging. St. John Evangelical Church in Carnegie has taken over with an expanding service area that includes the communities served by the West Allegheny area. The expanded branch also has a new name: South West Meals on Wheels.

   With this change, local Meals on Wheels branches need volunteers and clients. They also welcome funding to support the basic operations of securing food and preparing meals.

   According to the Meals on Wheels national web site, the Meals On Wheels Association of America is the oldest and largest membership organization supporting the national network of more than 5,000 Senior Nutrition Programs that operate in all 50 states and U.S. territories. The tireless work of these programs - supported by a dedicated army of two million volunteers - delivers a nutritious meal, a warm smile and a safety check that helps keep 2.5 million seniors healthy, safe and living independently in their own homes each year.

   Nearly one in six seniors do not know where their next meal is coming from each day. In fact, the Meals on Wheels Association of America Foundation conducted a study which revealed that in the United States, over five million seniors, (11.4% of all seniors), were marginally food insecure.

   In the airport communities, Meals on Wheels groups provide personal home delivery of nutritious meals to the homebound who are elderly or ill, and at a fraction of the cost of going out to eat or preparing a meal from scratch. On average, clients pay $25 a week for two meals delivered each weekday, a hot meal for lunch, and a cold, bagged meal for dinner.

   The meals represent more than one-third of the Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) of calories for seniors, and generally, a day’s worth of food is served each weekday between 10 a.m. and 12 p.m. At many sites, frozen meals are available to cover the weekends and holidays.

Besides the small fee paid by each client, donations cover the remaining costs. Sponsorships may be available for those unable to contribute toward the cost of their meal. Neighbors, family members, and friends can also donate toward the delivery of meals for friends or loved ones during their time of need. Donations can be made for a week at a time, or for any duration.

Donna and Jeff Marshall with Vicki Donne outside the Tonidale Marathon gas station and convenience store, as they prepare to make deliveries. A small storefront at the convenience store serves as a meeting place to divvy up meals picked up in Carnegie. Photo by Doug Hughey

 

South West Meals on Wheels Program Managers Candy Mageras, Teri Mascellino and Bob Colabianchi prepare meals for delivery throughout the region, including to the West Allegheny community. Photo by Doug Hughey

 

Volunteer Manju Germanwala packs meals at the South West Meals on Wheels headquarters in the St. John Evangelical Church in Carnegie. Photo by Doug Hughey

 
 

Among the area businesses donating food to the program are Bednar Farm Market, Costco, Giant Eagle, Panera Bread, Portman Farms, Trader Joe’s and The Fresh Market. Manchester Farms donates and delivers milk.

   After all meals are prepared and delivered, any leftover food is given to food banks or to The Salvation Army.

   Guidelines have been established to evaluate whether or not the program is suitable for meeting an individual’s needs. To enroll in the program, an individual must demonstrate the inability to plan, shop, and prepare nutritious, well-balanced meals. Individuals who are recovering from surgeries or accidents are also welcome, even if they only need the service for a short time.

   Each of the local Meals on Wheels groups serves a unique set of communities. At each location, a paid cook prepares the meals. Requests to accommodate special diets, particularly the needs of elderly due to health circumstances, are always taken into consideration, in particular those with modified diet requirements, such as diabetic or low sodium.

   Barb Hess, who oversees the West Hills Meals on Wheels team, notes that there is a steady need for help overall.

   “We have clients who need meals delivered, and a dwindling number of volunteers available to deliver,” she explains.

   The same situation is also affecting deliveries in the West Allegheny area. Sue Wise and Lena Cool volunteer for their area’s program. They are constantly seeking residents who can lend a hand for a day or a week or so.

   It doesn’t take a whole lot to be a volunteer, just a compassion to help others, a vehicle, and a couple of hours on the days of commitment.

   Teams of volunteers load up their cars with the meals and drive to client’s homes to make deliveries. Interaction between volunteers assures the client’s well-being, not only from a nutrition standpoint, but also to provide some social interaction via a friendly smile. Volunteers provide vital interaction with the elderly and homebound, acting as eyes and ears for them throughout the week. Many times, volunteers have saved clients from extended hospitalization or even death due to this daily visit, explains the Lutheran Service Society on its web site.

   That’s not the only thing volunteers do, however. They help in the kitchen, order food, train new volunteers, plan the driving schedules for volunteers, and help with any other tasks required to make sure the kitchen and deliveries run efficiently.

   Volunteer commitments vary. Volunteers can schedule days that work best for them, and a day’s commitment generally takes two to three hours to complete deliveries on a route. Volunteers are welcome for any length of time they are able to give, even if it is just one day a month or one day a week. Volunteers use their own vehicles and pay for their own gas.

   All volunteers complete an application, auto safety certification, confidentiality agreement, and sign a job description. A copy of the volunteer’s driver’s license is kept on file.

   With the change in sponsorship for the South West Meals on Wheels, monetary and food donations are especially welcomed. To make a monetary donation, go to gofundme.com/SouthWestMealsOnWheels. Fruits and vegetables grown and nurtured in personal or area gardens are welcomed for meal preparation, as are healthy packaged snacks.

   South West Meals on Wheels; Contact: Teri Mascellino and Bob Colabianchi; Phone: (412) 279-5670; Servicing: Beechview, Bridgeville, Carnegie, Cecil, Clinton, Collier Township, Crafton, Crafton Heights, Dormont, Green Tree, Heidelberg, Imperial, Ingram, Mt. Lebanon, Noble Towers Hi-Rise, Oakdale, Oakwood, Pennsbury, Ridgemont, Robinson Twp., Scott Twp., South Fayette Twp., Thornberg, Thornberry, Upper St. Clair and Westwood.

 
 
 

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