Worthy Agency Faces Difficult Financial Times

At this time of Thanksgiving, one agency that Lynchburg residents can be most thankful for — and there are many — is Meals on Wheels.

Volunteers for the nonprofit organization deliver a hot, balanced meal for the elderly at lunch time five days a week. The program is designed for those who can’t cook for themselves and who are not able to leave their homes. The hot meal often spells the difference between good nutrition and no nutrition for the recipients.

But, because of dwindling contributions, this worthy program has run into financial trouble. It is facing a $15,000 shortfall in contributions and officials say unless those contributions pick between now and the end of the year, the agency may have to close its doors after decades of service to the community.

Lisa Schafer, executive director of the program, says it is struggling to raise enough money by year’s end to keep delivering meals to its 250 elderly and shut-in clients. Despite the financial problems, the traditional Thanksgiving meal was never in jeopardy.

The program’s annual budget is about $400,000. Some 14 percent of that comes from the United Way, which has faithfully supported Meals on Wheels for years.

Schafer said recently that while the number of donations from individuals has remained the same as in previous years, the size of the donations is significantly less than last year and the years before that. She said individual donations averaged $25 each last year, while this year the average is only $5 to $10.

With donations that far down, she said, “By the end of the year we will have trouble making ends meet. It’s not that people don’t want to support us, but they are cutting back.”

Schafer said the nonprofit depends on a variety of sources for support and is looking at new ways to increase its fundraising. Churches, she said, have been faithful donors over the years, but even many of them are also facing the financial crunch that has placed a cloud over the economy this holiday season.

The volunteer drivers who deliver the meals also provide another important service to the program’s beneficiaries. They are able to check on those who live alone and report any changes in their health. Those drivers have also been known to change light bulbs and perform other chores around the house that the elderly can’t manage.

The meals plus that little bit of help on a weekly basis keeps those folks in their own homes and living independently longer than they could otherwise hope.

Meals on Wheels provides a significant service to the elderly in Lynchburg and the possibility of it going under is unthinkable. Economic times are tough, but not so tough that the community could turn its back on this invaluable nonprofit program.

Many of the Meals on Wheels recipients are making a choice between paying for their medications or their rent. If the program can’t make up its financial shortfall, some of them may have to add paying for meals into the mix of financial choices to survive.

Think about that during the season of thanks and send a contribution to Meals on Wheels. The address is P.O. Box 1388, Lynchburg, VA 24505. For more information or to offer other help, call the agency at (434) 847-0796 or visit the Web site, www.mealsonwheelslynchburg.org.