Citymeals-on-Wheels hand-delivers meals to homebound elderly New Yorkers on weekends, weekdays, holidays, and times of emergency - times when many vulnerable seniors would otherwise go without food.
It began as the brainchild of Gael Greene (former New York Times restaurant critic) and James Beard (the late famed uber chef) back in 1981 by raising private funds to supplement the government-funded weekday meal delivery program. The program currently funds 120 community-based agencies that bring weekend, holiday, emergency, and weekday meals to homebound elderly New Yorkers who can no longer shop or cook for themselves. More than two million meals were prepared to serve 17,000 homebound elderly New Yorkers in 2005--an astounding number if you think about it.
I've been a volunteer with this group and give it very high marks. Its executive director, Marcia Stein, has been with the agency since its inception and continues to help City Meals expand its reach to the number of people it feeds, including people living with AIDS and families in poverty. A very good thing, indeed.
Contributions can be mailed to Citymeals-on-Wheels, 355 Lexington Ave., New York, N.Y. 10017-6603.
www.citymeals.org
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