For more than four decades, Longmont Meals on Wheels has been providing hot, nutritious meals to the elderly, to people with disabilities, and to those who are recuperating at home after a hospital stay (Project Homecoming).
“We’re more than a meal, though,” Executive Director Karla Hale is quick to point out. “On a regular basis, we provide wellness checks. During the flood of 2013, we also looked in on people who we knew were affected, to make sure they were safe. And – because we’re connected to vulnerable populations – we were able to provide assurances to their family and friends who live elsewhere that their loved ones were being taken care of.
“We continue to provide extra meals to people who are still dealing with the effects of the flood, including ongoing cleanup.”
Located in the Longmont Senior Citizens Center as part of the city’s emergency plan, Meals on Wheels delivered 1,900 meals to flood victims over five days, doubling the number of meals usually delivered each day.
“We worked with Senior Center staff to move meals to the St. Vrain Memorial Building in Roosevelt Park where the shelter was,” Hale said. “All eight of our staff pitched in. Our families helped out in the kitchen, too, and our regular volunteers made deliveries. We were able to help our community as a whole by providing meals nonstop.”
According to Hale, there’s “hidden” hunger in Longmont that often comes to light when visitors to an elderly or disabled person see a need – including lingering needs for flood cleanup – and call on Meals on Wheels for meal support and other available resources.
“When the flood happened, some of us were worried about clients in the Royal Mobile Park, so we went there to make sure they were out – and they were. Then we went to another trailer park, but couldn’t get some residents to leave. One veteran was firm about staying in his home – it’s all he had, and thankfully he’s still there. But some folks couldn’t go back to their homes, and some ended up in assisted living.”
Hale describes how the community came together to help where help was needed…without missing a beat.
“Families made P&J sandwiches for workers on the roads…and when I couldn’t find enough eggs, dozens of eggs showed up on my doorstep,” she said. “We were lucky to get so much support, and it was truly amazing how well Longmont responded to the flood as a community. Not that we ever want to go through it again!”
