Here’s how to help Meals on Wheels survive Trump budget

Those with Mobile Meals said they’ll continue to help the elderly regardless of how the budget shakes out.

I’m writing about what I’m hearing on the news now that President Donald Trump is wanting to do away with programs like Community Action Partnership and NARCOG and Meals On Wheels and kids that are poor and getting free school lunches and people that are handicapped where Medicaid pays their medical insurance, etc.

The cutting of that particular grant would not be detrimental to the Tyler-based Meals on Wheels, but other funding sources could see cuts and Mrs. Lawhorn said they are concerned about those. “We couldn’t deliver our meals without our volunteers and they make a big difference in our client’s lives”.

“Our funding across the spectrum is intertwined in so many other agencies overall budgets, you just don’t know what’s going to end up on the chopping block and how it could affect us down the road”, Mrs. Lawhorn said.

The Catholic Youth Association program, which is run out of the Stephen Foster Community Center in Lawrenceville, delivers two meals per customer three days a week (and adds frozen meals for the weekends, if needed). With the programs in North Dakota totaling $8.86 million, $2.58 million was covered by federal funds.

However, the CEO and president of Rockland’s Meals on Wheels program says with nearly 800 meals served daily it’s just not true. He worked for the city of Savannah for more than 20 years.

So the announcement last week of a proposal to slash the federal Human and Services budget by 18 percent has ominous implications. “I don’t have the ability to stand and cook for myself or to go to the store”, she said. “Not only do they provide much needed nutrition to seniors and people with disabilities, they provide a daily check and many other services that help keep individuals in their homes and aging in place”.

In Palm Beach County, Meals on Wheels does not receive any federal funds, according to Executive Director Palm Calzadilla.

“For us, it’s scary”, said CEO and President Pamela Calzadilla. There are ways people can contribute to the program including volunteering, monetary donations or supporting upcoming fundraisers.

“I was living check to check, and then no check to no check”, Derby said, who received $350 for the cold weather months.

Following proposed federal budget cuts, the future of the local program lies in a gray area.

Every Tuesday, Alma would drive to at least nine and at most a dozen homes of people who qualified for Meals on Wheels deliveries. Edwards for ma4, and AARP Missouri, testified against HCB 3 because they believe it would reduce affordable housing, and bring hardship to the 60-100,000 senior renters no longer eligible for the credit who rely on the approximately $530 tax rebate for basics. “And if we succeed at that, that’ll be great and, if we don’t, I look forward to a trial and being exonerated, because I know what I did, and I know the work I do and it has nothing to do with what’s alleged”. We have to ask “Is this how we start?” – with the defunding of programs that feed and nurture frail homebound senior members of our communities?