SAN DIEGO — As local baby boomers age into retirement, San Diego’s senior population continues to grow at an unprecedented pace. But with limited income and San Diego’s high cost of living, many older adults don’t have enough income to meet basic needs. That’s where Meals On Wheels steps in to provide a hot meal and human connection to thousands of homebound seniors. Brent Wakefield, President & CEO of Meals On Wheels San Diego, joins our Laura Cavanaugh to share more about their mission.
Meals On Wheels supports nearly 2,000 homebound seniors each day with a virtual army of volunteers.
“We like to say we deliver hot meals and warm smiles and it’s thanks to our volunteers,” said Wakefield. “We’re working with clients who are 60 and above and disabled veterans of any age.”
The organization’s volunteers deliver meals across San Diego County every day of the year, except on Sundays, even on holidays. That equates to more than 330,000 touches to homebound seniors.
Meals On Wheels also partners with Helen Woodward Animal Center to provide free dog and cat food to all of the senior clients who sign up.
“A lot of these people they’re on a fixed income, of course they’re retired. They may have mobility issues, which is likely the case,” said Wakefield. “They’re probably alone – 50% of the clients that we’re delivering meals to live alone. So our volunteers are the only person that they’re going to see that day.”
Volunteers also serve as a critical safety net, providing daily visits, meals, smiles, safety checks and a source of human connection.
“Multiple times a week across the county there’s a senior that has fallen and are yelling for help when we knock on the door,” said Wakefield. “If we hadn’t come that day, they would be on the floor for another 24-48 hours before somebody found them.”
Meals On Wheels was awarded a $500,000 grant from the SDG&E Community Assistance Fund to ensure the well-being of San Diego’s seniors.
“Our gratitude toward SDG&E, who has been a remarkable partner already for the last 15 years, is just off the charts,” said Wakefield. “In a moment when the senior population is growing at unprecedented rates. We’re going to be one in four citizens in our county is going to be a senior in seven years. What we want to do is double the number of clients we can serve and also double the number of volunteers that we have to serve those clients.”
Volunteers play a critical role in ensuring seniors remain independent. Many of the Meals On Wheels volunteers are retired, but also younger people enjoy volunteering. It’s something you can do with your friends, your kids, even your co-workers. It’s a great bonding moment that teaches the value of giving back.
If you have a driver's license and love in your heart, consider signing up to volunteer to deliver Meals On Wheels this holiday season.
To deliver, donate or to volunteer, call (619) 295-9501 or visit www.sandiegomealsonwheels.org
And to learn more about how SDG&E is powering positive change and for a full list of the grant recipients, visit www.sdge.com/community
Sponsored by: SDG&E