By Julie Piper Finley | Director of Marketing & Communications
We continue to serve an increasing number of meals to homebound seniors, both on weekends and weekdays. Recent client surveys show that 25% of the homebound seniors we serve live at or below poverty. For many of them, the meals we provide are their only food on the weekends. Our meals are not a luxury. They are often what allow frail, homebound seniors to remain independent and living in their own homes. And the need is growing. We have served 27% more meals between Sept. 1 and Dec. 31, 2013 than in the same time period in 2012. We annually plan for a growth in meals betwen 3% and 5%, so this jump in service requests is unprecedented.
And we are serving "younger" seniors. Our largest area of growth is for those seniors between the ages of 60 and 69. This is because of two main causes: more baby boomers are turning 60 each day and those that are have not prepared physcially or financially for retirement. They are turning to Meals on Wheels People to help supplement small, fixed incomes.
Our vision is that no senior will go hungry or experience social isolation. For more than 44 years, Meals on Wheels People has provided hot meals to every senior who requests them. Unlike 80% of the senior nutrition programs in this country, we have no waiting list for meals. We depend on donors like those who give throughj GlobalGiving to help us maintain that reputation. Thank you for caring about seniors in our community.
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