Meals on Wheels
Hi, my name is Eric Kelleher and I am the Director of the Senior Citizens Center. I have been at the Center for almost eighteen years. I think all of the services we offer are of value to the clients. However, the one service that we provide, that I think is the most valuable, is the home delivered meals. We serve just over 100 meals each day to our home bound clients. It is the same meal that we cook and serve at the Senior Center. Let me answer just a few questions that are asked many times by clients.
1. What qualifies someone for meals on wheels? One must be 60 years of age or older, homebound and unable to attend the congregate site. The client must live at home alone or have no one in the home on a regular basis capable of preparing meals. There should be a medical need, either physical or mental, that complicates the preparing of meals.
2. Where all do you deliver and how often. We deliver meals to Calloway County with three routes that go in every direction of the county. One meal a day is delivered, Monday through Friday. We start delivering meals at 9:00a, so everyone receives their hot meal by noon.
3. Is the meal nutritious? The short answer is yes and approved for diabetics. We have a nutritionist that coordinates the meal plan and even the recipes we use. We limit the use of salt and we do not fry. Each meal contains 1/3 of your daily allowance of almost every vitamin and mineral you need. It is quite a challenge for our nutritionist, but I think you will see she does a good job.
4. What does the meal cost? The full price of the meal delivered is $4.25 each. We do receive a Federal/State grant each year which helps offset the cost. Most of our clients only donate a portion of that cost. There is always a waiting list for the subsidized meals.
5. How long will I have to wait for a meal? There is no way to determine the answer to that question because there are many variables. We assign a priority number to each client waiting and then we take the highest number that lives on that particular route.
I know there are still many unanswered questions, but these are just a few that everyone wants to know. Please feel free to call us at (270) 753-0929, and we will be glad to answer any and all questions you may have.
Blessings,
Eric Kelleher, Director
1. What qualifies someone for meals on wheels? One must be 60 years of age or older, homebound and unable to attend the congregate site. The client must live at home alone or have no one in the home on a regular basis capable of preparing meals. There should be a medical need, either physical or mental, that complicates the preparing of meals.
2. Where all do you deliver and how often. We deliver meals to Calloway County with three routes that go in every direction of the county. One meal a day is delivered, Monday through Friday. We start delivering meals at 9:00a, so everyone receives their hot meal by noon.
3. Is the meal nutritious? The short answer is yes and approved for diabetics. We have a nutritionist that coordinates the meal plan and even the recipes we use. We limit the use of salt and we do not fry. Each meal contains 1/3 of your daily allowance of almost every vitamin and mineral you need. It is quite a challenge for our nutritionist, but I think you will see she does a good job.
4. What does the meal cost? The full price of the meal delivered is $4.25 each. We do receive a Federal/State grant each year which helps offset the cost. Most of our clients only donate a portion of that cost. There is always a waiting list for the subsidized meals.
5. How long will I have to wait for a meal? There is no way to determine the answer to that question because there are many variables. We assign a priority number to each client waiting and then we take the highest number that lives on that particular route.
I know there are still many unanswered questions, but these are just a few that everyone wants to know. Please feel free to call us at (270) 753-0929, and we will be glad to answer any and all questions you may have.
Blessings,
Eric Kelleher, Director
