Edmonton Meals on Wheels: Tackling loneliness one client at a time
What is a warm meal to you?
Is it a quick bagel on the way to work? A pizza on your journey home?
What if that meal was your only access to the outside world? That is what so many of our homebound neighbours view their Edmonton Meals on Wheels deliveries as – a lifeline to society.
Enter volunteers like Ryan, who ensure that, on a daily basis, this service is provided to those in need.
“They’re not just clients in my eyes, they’ve become friends. They don’t really get out much – they’re older and they really count on us” she says.
At Edmonton Meals on Wheels, Volunteer Delivery Drivers offer so much more than meal delivery. They are trained eyes and ears that can detect vital problems.
But more importantly, day to day, these volunteers offer simple, but necessary conversation. What is more encouraging is the friendship these chats bring. More than a meal, Edmonton Meals on Wheels offers not only a well-balanced diet for those in need, but resources to help clients keep their mental health in check as well. The dedicated volunteers are key in fighting isolation related issues and other problems associated with being homebound.
In an in-house survey, a staggering 76 per cent of Edmonton Meals on Wheels clients receiving hot meals live alone. With these numbers, it’s no wonder clients tell stories of their days revolving around the visits with their Volunteer Delivery Driver.
Patricia, a client since 2015, says “I really appreciate the service and the visits from the volunteers. They are really nice and polite. It’s usually the only person I see in a day, so I look forward to it.”
For many others like Patricia, making a meal and socializing are simply not accessible. When important things like this are out of reach, it can cause serious health problems. This begs the question—what can be done for those who have laid the foundation for our city and now find themselves restricted? Bring the community to them.
Through good food and even better conversation, we can help change the lives of those who are in need. It just takes a few minutes to change someone’s life for the better.
If you would like to help improve the lives of those who are homebound within our city by volunteering with Edmonton Meals on Wheels, visit their website www. mealsonwheelsedmonton.org or call 780-429-2020.