Good Food and Great Service -- Meals on Wheels in the Finger Lakes

Red Cross volunteer Marge Hanford (left) delivers food to Meals on Wheels recipient, Ruth Campbell.

Seniors in Seneca Falls, NY, have kept their sense of independence for 21 years thanks to the Meals on Wheels program and nearly 100 volunteers from American Red Cross in the Finger Lakes. Northern Seneca County residents enrolled in the meals program receive a hand-delivered lunch and dinner every weekday by Red Cross volunteers.

Parents and children, grandparents and individuals with special needs bring meals and smiling faces to residents who are often homebound. Lewis and Carol Scialdone bring their daughter and grandchildren to visit clients. "Many days, we are the only persons that these nice people are going to see. They enjoy talking with us or showing us something they are currently doing. We know we are so blessed and want to do something to help others."

Ruth Campbell, a client of three years, is delighted with the meals program. "I can't wait to taste the mouthwatering chicken and the strawberry shortcake made with real biscuits!" she said. "I am so grateful for Meals on Wheels and the American Red Cross of the Finger Lakes; they are quite a team!"

Certified dieticians and chefs at a local long-term care facility prepare over 18,500 meals a year for Meals on Wheels clients. Although individual requests cannot always be met, meals for persons requiring low-fat, low-sodium or diabetic diets are offered. Participants must fit certain criteria for enrollment in the program. They must be at least 60 years of age; physically, mentally or emotionally handicapped; convalescing and unable to shop for themselves. Meals on Wheels in the Finger Lakes is funded by the Seneca County Office of the Aging.

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