If you’ve got a valid driver’s license, a reliable vehicle and a heart to help others, then Meals on Wheels would like to meet you.
The program, which delivers hot meals to homebound Oxford senior citizens Monday through Friday, is currently seeking volunteer drivers who can start as soon as possible.
‘A lot of our drivers went south (for the winter) and one of the banks that was doing it for us had to stop because they had to let people go,? said Mary Anne Bennett, who works for the Older Persons Commission in Rochester, which provides meals to its area plus six other communities. She’s the site hostess manager.
The bank she was referring to is Oxford Bank, which since June 2009 has lost 33 employees due to staff reductions, retirements and attrition. Bennett said the bank employees used to make deliveries during their regular work hours as a community service.
As a result, Oxford’s Meals on Wheels program is in desperate need of volunteer drivers to deliver food right to seniors? doors and perform wellness checks to make sure they’re doing okay.
Drivers can set their own schedules.
‘It’s entirely up to them,? Bennett said. ‘They can deliver once a week or once a month or be called as needed.?
Between picking up the prepared meals at the Crossroads for Youth campus on E. Drahner Rd. and delivering them along predetermined routes, Bennett indicated ‘the time commitment is an hour or less.?
‘They break it up into two or three routes,? she explained. ‘One person doesn’t do 17 meals.?
Currently, the site provides meals on a regular basis to 15-24 seniors throughout the township. In order to be eligible for the program, a person must be age 60 or older and unable to grocery shop for themselves or cook their own meals.
Anyone age 18 and older who’s interested in becoming a volunteer driver is encouraged to call the Oxford Meals on Wheels site at (248) 236-9260 between 10:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Those who call at other times are asked to leave a message and someone will get back with you.