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St. Lawrence County home-delivered meal programs serving up to 550 people per day

Posted 2/5/20

BY CHERYL SHUMWAY North Country This Week MASSENA -- Up to 550 St. Lawrence County senior citizens receive a hot, nutritious meal every weekday, as well as someone to check in with them, thanks to …

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St. Lawrence County home-delivered meal programs serving up to 550 people per day

Posted

BY CHERYL SHUMWAY
North Country This Week

MASSENA -- Up to 550 St. Lawrence County senior citizens receive a hot, nutritious meal every weekday, as well as someone to check in with them, thanks to two programs: Massena Meals on Wheels and the St. Lawrence County Nutrition Programs.

Meals on Wheels Director, Cindy Sullivan, said their program serves about 100 clients a day, Monday through Friday.

Office for the Aging Meals Program Manager, Danielle Durant, said they serve about 450 meals, and have definitely noticed an increased need for the program.

“We average 35 new home delivered meal clients a month, which is almost a 50% increase from last year,” said Durant.

The programs deliver meals for seniors who are homebound and in need, either on a short or long -term basis.

“A major goal is to allow older adults to age in place. Many of our clients have stated that without the home delivered meals they would not be able to safely stay in his/her home.,” said Durant.

“Many of the seniors we serve live alone and lack a support system. For many, the only interaction he/she may have is when the meal is delivered. It can be the highlight of their day. An added benefit of the program is it allows us to check on the high-risk clients on a daily basis.”

“Lots of times the meal program is the tip of the iceberg. It is just the start of other services,” said Renee Lomoglio, an elderly advocate with the Office for the Aging.

“Our job is to let these seniors know what services are available, so they can age in place. We want to make sure people who want to stay at home can,” she said.

New clients are assessed to connect them with additional services needed, such as SNAP, HEAP, assistance with medical referrals for eyes and ears, attaining safety equipment, and life alert buttons.

The Office for the Aging program has eight nutrition centers in Brasher, Canton, DeKalb, Gouverneur, Morristown, Ogdensburg, Potsdam and Star Lake where meals are served at the congregate dining halls.

“The congregate dining provides an opportunity for older adults to connect socially with their peers,” said Durant.

From these centers, meals are also delivered to the surrounding areas as best as they can, said Durant. Current meal delivery routes serve Brasher, Canton, DeKalb, Hermon, Russell, Edwards, Star Lake, Gouverneur, Fowler, Hailesboro, Morristown, Hammond, Norwood, Norfolk, Madrid, Waddington, Colton and South Colton.

Massena Meals on Wheels delivers to people in the Massena area. It is partially funded by the Office for the Aging. In addition, they receive funding from the Village of Massena, Town of Louisville, grants, local donations and service clubs. It was founded in 1984 by Parker Downs and Paul Sharlow.

“It’s a community effort to keep it all going,” said Sullivan. The program gets support from service clubs such as AmVets, Men’s and Women’s Auxiliary, Rotary, Lions Club of Louisville, the Elks, Moose Lodge, local churches, the Salvation Army, and clients’ contributions.”

“I have 50 volunteers who do all the delivering of the meals. They are truly dedicated and compassionate people to brave all the elements to make sure their clients get a meal. Staying upright on all the ice this time of year is no easy task!” said Sullivan.

Two delivery volunteers for Massena, Josie Post and Cathy Macioce, praised Sullivan, director of Meals on Wheels the last two years.

“Cindy is very devoted. We can’t get over how much she does,” said Post.

Trudy Shirley, the Meals on Wheels cook for the last 20 years, and Sullivan often do double duty, filling in as bakers and packing food containers as needed.

Both programs are in search of more volunteers.

“We can always use a list of volunteer people who would be willing to substitute when our regular drivers are unable to come. We need to get some "young retired" people to volunteer. Some of our drivers have been doing this for 25 years,” said Sullivan.

One Massena Meals on Wheels volunteer, Roy Portolese is 94-years old, and another Massena volunteer was 96 last year when she quit as a driver.

Office for the Aging Nutrition Program manager Durant said they are hoping for more volunteers to be able to expand service to include areas not reached now, such as Lisbon, Heuvelton and Morley.

For seniors residing in an area not currently reached, a family member, caregiver or other person can call the Office for the Aging to pick up meals at any of the eight centers in the county.

Durant said about 80 volunteers are assisting with delivering meals or preparing them, as well as United Helpers, The ARC of St. Lawrence County and local schools/colleges.

For those interested in home delivered meals or volunteering, contact St. Lawrence County Office for the Aging at 315-386-4730