Meals on Wheels volunteers spreading cheer, checking on recipients during winter weather
DALLAS - The days before the holidays are some of the busiest of the year for charities, and the freezing temperatures aren't going to slow down Meal on Wheels.
The program is set to deliver thousands of meals to homebound seniors and disabled adults throughout Dallas County.
The crew at Haggerty Kitchen was preparing 4,500 holiday meals on Friday morning.
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The menu includes turkey breast, cornbread dressing, gallons of hot gravy, vegetables, hot rolls and ambrosia pudding.
Each client will also receive a bag full of toiletry items.
The food will be delivered by 600 volunteer delivery drivers.
Each volunteer will make about ten stops throughout the county.
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Each time, in addition to a friendly greeting, they make sure each client is safe, warm and doing okay.
"The volunteers are critical because they are our eyes and ears. They can check on the client when they go out into the home and also provide some holiday cheer as well as make a connection with the community," said Katherine Krause, the CEO of the Visiting Nurse Association. "The delivery today may be the only in-person contact the recipients have."
Because of the cold weather Meals on Wheels is changing the normal routine for getting meals to the volunteer drivers.
The food is being kept indoors until the last minute to limit everyone's exposure to the sub-freezing temperatures.