Age-friendly service
Seniors will get healthy and locally sourced food delivered to their door
Province helps out seniors food program.
Susan Hawes knows how important seniors are to her community, that’s why she’s giving back to them.
Hawes, originally from Halifax, moved to Cape Breton just over a year ago and most recently started volunteering with the meals on wheels program, working roughly 20 hours a week as a prep chef, helping prepare meals for local seniors.
“I go home at night and I sleep peacefully knowing that I’ve helped someone else,” said Hawes. “I don’t mind helping seniors, they have given so much to us over their time — I’m the type of person that if they need help, I’ll help.”
Hawes was among close to 20 people in attendance Tuesday for a provincial government announcement of $9,400 through a community grant to help support the Ecology Action Centre’s Age-Friendly Food Box program.
The announcement was made by MLA Derek Mombourquette on behalf of Minister of Seniors Leo Glavine.
The Ecology Action Centre will partner with New Dawn Meals on Wheels and the Pan-Cape Breton Food Hub to pilot the Age-Friendly Food Box program within the Cape Breton Regional Municipality.
The program will help seniors get deliveries of healthy and locally sourced food to their door.
Claire Turpin, a registered dietician and program manager at New Dawn, said the innovative is something they have been
considering for a long time.
“We deliver prepared meals right to our clients doors,” she said. “Often times we feel our clients could greatly benefit from other grocery items, as you can image, sometimes our clients have mobility issues or lack the access to get to a grocery store themselves.
“To be able to offer them
fresh, especially locally sourced, grocery items like fruits, veggies and meats is really exciting for us.”
The province awarded more than $285,000 in Age-Friendly Community Grants to 32 groups, including the Ecology Action Centre, across Nova Scotia to create opportunities to support, engage and include older adults
in the community.
Currently, the meals on wheels program is serving 60 people, but Turpin hopes the program will grow.
“Now that we have our own kitchen, we can really get our brand out there and try to put a mark on it,” said Turpin.
Clients wishing to join the meals on wheels program or
those wanting to volunteer, are asked to phone the office at 902562-1245.
As for Hawes, she said she plans to continue volunteering with the meals of wheels program and encourages more people to help with the innovative.