Like clockwork, John and Lynn Meyer pull up on
the east side of Poudre Valley Hospital at precisely 11 a.m. every Monday
and Thursday. They’re full of smiles and raring to go out and do something
they love — deliver a passel of fresh, hot meals to homebound people in
need.
As they descend through a tree-shaded patio on their way to the hospital’s
kitchen on a recent August morning, they are joined by fellow Meals on
Wheels volunteers, all toting specially designed, insulated satchels.
Within half an hour, all 25 or so volunteers have picked up their delivery
assignments and meals. They quickly disperse, making a beeline to the
first home on their assignment sheet — before the warm meals start to
cool.
“We really enjoy doing this together,” Lynn says. “It’s an easy way to get
out and do something worthwhile,” adds her husband, John, a retired
business consultant and board president of Fort Collins Meals on Wheels.
More than 200 total volunteers form a legion of well-wishers who quietly
yet devotedly serve fellow community members who, through age or
disability, find it hard to leave the house. The volunteers transport 150
meals right to the residents’ front doors, Monday through Friday every
week of the year — including holidays. About 400 people receive meals
through the program in any given year.
In addition, Meals on Wheels volunteers serve as the eyes and ears of the
community, monitoring the welfare of some of our most vulnerable citizens,
who rely on the kindness of strangers to help them continue living
independently.
“We’re helping people stay in their homes, and the well-being check we
provide is priceless,” says Valerie DiBenedetto, executive director of
Fort Collins Meals on Wheels. “If no one answers the door, we will check
with their contacts to make sure they’re okay.”
Although most meal recipients are at least 70 years old, the program also
serves younger people with disabilities affecting their mobility and
people recovering from surgery or illness who need short-term assistance.
“Our criteria for clients are simple: they are
homebound and unable to prepare nutritious meals for themselves,” says
DiBenedetto.
When the program started in 1969, meals were prepared in the local Elks
Club kitchen. But the program quickly outgrew that capacity, and for the
past 30 years or so, meals have been prepared in the kitchen of Poudre
Valley Hospital. The PVH kitchen now provides 35,000 meals annually
through Meals on Wheels.
“PVH does such a fabulous job for us,”
DiBenedetto says. “We wouldn’t be able to do this program without their
help.”
In addition to PVH’s in-kind donations, the program relies on payments
from participants, who pay $2 to $4.50 per meal (depending on their
income), as well as financial donations from individuals and businesses.
DiBenedetto says most of the program’s meal
recipients are referred by professional care providers, though anyone
meeting the criteria can get into the program through a quick and easy
application process.
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Fort Collins Meals on
Wheels: Vital Statistics
Years in operation:
39
Location where meals are prepared:
Poudre Valley Hospital kitchen
Meals delivered annually:
35,000
Total number of people served annually:
400
Number of meals delivered daily (M–F):
150
Total number of volunteer drivers:
200
Number of drivers needed daily to deliver meals:
25 to 30
Number of miles driven on each delivery route:
3 to 25
Greatest number of years an individual volunteer has delivered meals:
38
Percentage of meal recipients 70 or older:
80
Percentage of meal recipients 90 or older:
20
First Meals on Wheels program in U.S.:
Philadelphia (1950s)
First Meals on Wheels west of the Mississippi:
Loveland-Berthoud (1968)
Second Meals on Wheels west of the Mississippi:
Fort Collins (1969)
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