Volunteers needed to deliver food to homebound residents in Liberty and Ames

The South Liberty County Meals on Wheels (SLC) program is looking for volunteers to serve as delivery drivers on four different routes through the cities of Liberty and Ames. 

Due to a cutback in available volunteers, Meals on Wheels has had to scale back daily deliveries, moving from a five-day delivery schedule to delivering only four days each week.

“To start back up delivering five days a week, we need at least four new drivers, ideally up to eight new volunteers so they can deliver in pairs,” said volunteer coordinator and board member Lori Williams.

“Some of our amazing drivers are delivering multiple times a week because they are so committed to our purpose and truly love our clients,” Williams explained.

The pandemic has been particularly tough for the homebound residents.

“Our clients are, of course, in the at-risk population, as are many of our regular volunteers.  We are taking every precaution to keep everyone safe, but the need to feed our homebound elderly is still very much real,” said Kim Stegall, Executive Director of GRACE Initiative, the parent organization that oversees the SLC Meals on Wheels program.

People who are willing to work just a few hours per week are needed.

“Maybe you are a recent retiree, or maybe you were a stay-at-home mom, the kids are back in school now, and you have an hour to spare during the week.  Becoming a volunteer with Meals on Wheels is an opportunity to make a real difference in the lives of people living near you, taking care of both their physical need and their emotional need to connect with someone and to know they are loved and that they matter,” said board member Emily Cook.

Volunteers undergo training, ride along on routes with seasoned volunteers to learn the ropes and then are assigned a route that works with their schedules.

To volunteer, call 936-346-7678 and leave a voicemail or email Lori at drivers@libertymeals.com.