Meals On Wheels Determined To Continue Despite Budget Cuts

The Spokane Valley Meals on Wheels program isn’t waiting around. Budget cuts or not, the group is going to continue full steam ahead.

“We need to be prepared for whatever happens in social services. We want to be able to serve people regardless of their ability to pay,” said director Ruth Fearn.

Delivering 50,000 meals per year, though, takes money.

That’s why the group kicked off its first-annual fund drive Wednesday. Fearn said she can’t be taken by surprise if there are less government dollars to fund the group’s efforts in years to come.

The organization hopes to raise $30,000 during the one-month push.

The group will accept mailed-in or pledged gifts, and will also have its board members contact supporters who have donated money in the past.

Currently, drivers deliver meals to 200 elderly or home-bound people every day. There are 75 volunteer drivers, and Fearn said they usually deliver with a friend, upping the count to 150.

Collectively, they cover 80,000 miles of ground every year.

Meal recipients depend on those daily visits. Fearn said drivers provide more than just nutrition, they also provide a friendly face and someone to talk to. Many elderly people wouldn’t have visitors to check in on them otherwise.

Drivers often also run errands or do other favors for the folks on their routes.

Fearn said the average age of those who benefit from Meals on Wheels is 81. They get a lot older, though - there are 27 over age 90, and 11 over 95. The oldest is 105.

“Most would be in nursing homes if it wasn’t for Meals on Wheels,” Fearn said.

For information, call 924-6976.

, DataTimes