Meals on Wheels welcomes donations

Looking for the gift for the “one who has everything?”  

Finding just the right Christmas present for that person whose material needs are more than satisfied is always a challenge.

How about sponsoring some meals for those less fortunate, for the elderly, disabled and shut-in?

Warren County’s Meals on Wheels (MoW) program invites you to consider a gift that moves sideways, one that reaches out of our circle of family, friends and co-workers.

“In this land of plenty most of the people we know already have everything they need and want,” said Dana Green, a longtime Meals on Wheels delivery volunteer and member of the nonprofit’s board of directors.

“For the person who doesn’t really need anything, maybe the most useful and appreciated gift would be a donation to Meals on Wheels in that person’s honor," she suggested. “A donation in memory of a loved one or a friend who has passed away is a wonderful gift also, one that is a living memorial.”

Until this year the community-based feeding charity benefited from the Back to the Strip annual fundraiser and bulk food donations from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. When both of those sources went away, Meals on Wheels was left scrambling to cover the loss of funding and increased cost of purchased food.

The Warren County High School Future Farmers of America (FFA) will be at the doors of the McMinnville Walmart Friday, Nov. 28 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. to receive gifts of non-perishable food to replenish the Meals on Wheels pantry. 

Collection boxes are also set up at offices of Citizens Tri-County Bank to receive donations of food and personal care items, Green noted. Suggested foods include bagged apples, oranges and tangerines, as well as boxes of raisins and Christmas candies.

The personal care items might include toothpaste, toothbrushes, shampoo, body wash, lip balm and cozy socks. Nutritional supplements such as Ensure are also welcomed, as are large-print crossword puzzle books.

MoW prepares and distributes some 230 meals per day to clients in Warren County. Organizers say they can serve ample, nutritionally balanced meals for a little less than $6 each, a benefit made possible by generous donors and a team of volunteer drivers who pay for their own gasoline, tires, maintenance and insurance.

Those volunteers are getting a holiday break this week as two local churches—Living Word Fellowship and Covenant Fellowship–will be preparing and delivering meals Thursday and Saturday.

Donations, which are fully tax deductible thanks to MoW’s 501c3 status, may be written to Warren County Meals on Wheels and mailed to 106 East End Drive, McMinnville TN 37110.   For more information, call 931 473.3514.