Since its beginning in 1969, Longmont’s Meal on Wheels program has delivered food to homebound individuals in the community. On Feb. 8, the nonprofit will celebrate its 3 millionth delivery.
According to Feeding America, one in every 15 older adults in America face hunger. In 2020, that meant 5.2 million adults age 60 or older were not able to eat regular meals.
The Longmont program currently serves an average of 450 meals a day, according to Kathryn Wiser, development and communications director for the Longmont Meals on Wheels program.
This number is up “a little bit from last year,” Wiser said.
“It’s pretty exciting. It’s pretty humbling. I think it’s a sign of the cornerstone that is a warm meal and somebody just checking on their neighbors and how far that goes to maintaining your health and helping you stay in your home for as long as possible and helping the aging process be as smooth as possible and as joy-filled as it should be,” Wiser said.
Reaching this milestone would not have been possible without the over 500 volunteers who give their time to delivering meals and checking on clients, Wiser said.
“So much of what gets accomplished is because of the caring and the conscientiousness of volunteers and because they are doing it week after week, they really get to know our participants and how they are doing,” Wiser said. “They are really able to kind of hold the hearth of Longmont Meals on Wheels.”
In 2022, Longmont Meals on Wheels served 1,234 clients in the Longmont area, that includes those who join the organization for lunch at the Longmont Senior Center.
On Feb. 8, volunteers will deliver the 3,000,000th and 3,000,001st meals to a homebound client in the Longmont, Niwot or Lyons areas.
The meal will be a classic pot roast with gravy, mashed potatoes and island vegetables.
Correction: Longmont Meals on Wheels serves 450 meals a day, not a week.
