Imagine having a hot, nutritious meal delivered fresh to your door every day, even holidays.
Oxford senior citizens don’t have to imagine it because that service is already available to them through their local Meals on Wheels program.
Every week, Monday through Friday, a truck from the Rochester-based Older Persons Commission (OPC) center delivers a bulk food shipment to the Crossroads for Youth campus on E. Drahner Rd. in Oxford.
Then it’s up to the site hostesses, Mary Reynolds, of Oxford, and Siobhan Heuninck, to package the food into individual meals and distribute them to the volunteer drivers who deliver them to seniors? residences.
‘Everybody gets a hot lunch,? said Reynolds, who’s spent four years helping manage the local Meals on Wheels routes and drivers. ‘I’d say the (food) quality is excellent. They get a nice portion, too.?
Currently, the site provides meals on a regular basis to 15-24 seniors throughout the township. Weekend deliveries are available to Oxford seniors, just not through the Crossroads site.
In addition to a hot meal, seniors can also request an additional cold meal, which many save for supper, according to Reynolds.
In order to be eligible for Meals on Wheels, a person must be age 60 or older and unable to grocery shop for themselves or cook their own meals.
Ruth Hartter, head of the nutrition department at OPC, said when a senior calls and requests meal delivery, the service begins within 24 hours.
There is a suggested donation of $3.50 per meal, however, seniors are encouraged to pay whatever they can afford. And if they can’t pay, that’s all right, they still get a meal.
Given the fact that Oxford is a 36-square-mile township with a significant senior population, Reynold is puzzled as to why Meals on Wheels has such a small list of clients.
‘I don’t know if there’s a criteria people aren’t meeting or if people are just not aware of it,? she said.
Hartter noted unlike many communities throughout the country, there is currently no waiting list for OPC’s Meals on Wheels.
Meals on Wheels deliveries in Oxford are handled eight regular drivers along with volunteers from Oxford Bank, Flagstar Bank and the Oxford-based Life Skills Center, a vocational training program for developmentally disabled people. The program also has 10 substitute drivers.
Driver Robin Frank, of Oxford, volunteers because ‘it’s a good thing to do and a kind thing to do.? Frank’s been delivering meals on and off for about six or seven years and her favorite part of the experience is ‘the feeling of being needed.?
For Reynolds, Meals on Wheels is more than just a food delivery service, it’s a means for people to meet, talk, connect and forge lasting relationships.
‘I find it very interesting and heartwarming when a driver will come back and talk about a certain senior citizen,? she said. ‘When I deliver, I enjoy visiting with the different senior citizens.?
Many drivers go that extra mile for their seniors by doing things like bringing in their mail or newspaper, chatting with them, listening to their stories and checking on them to make sure they’re okay.
That last one is particularly important when it comes to seniors who live alone or don’t have a full-time caregiver.
‘If something doesn’t look right or I have a question, I call it in,? Frank said.
Whenever Reynolds runs into former drivers, they always ask about the seniors they used to deliver meals to. Some of them still visit the seniors from time to time.
‘I just think that’s fantastic that these people make this connection,? Reynolds added. ‘They’re only there a short time, but they still make this nice connection.?
To sign up for Meals on Wheels call the OPC Senior Resource Department at (248) 608-0264. To volunteer as a driver for the program call the Oxford site at (248) 236-9260.