Courtesy of ADRC-CW

TOMAHAWK – As we approach winter, COVID continues in our community. So does hunger and the need for connection with older adults. Do you have an hour or two a month to make a difference? Meals on Wheels in Tomahawk has provided nutritious meals in the city and surrounding areas for decades. The pandemic has caused even more challenges for homebound older adults.

Last year, the Aging and Disability Resource Center of Central Wisconsin (ADRC-CW) served 25,610 Meals on Wheels and 6,497 senior dining meals in Lincoln County. That’s 32,107 total meals served to Lincoln County residents. Volunteers are crucial to serving these meals.

Meals on Wheels in Tomahawk are provided Monday through Friday. More volunteers are needed to continue to provide hot meals regularly. Volunteers deliver from 10:40 a.m. until 11:40 or noon (depending on the length of the route). Some volunteers are able to deliver once a week, and others commit to one or two times a month. Precautions are in place to reduce the risk of COVID, such as wearing masks, physical distancing and hand sanitizer.

The ADRC-CW’s Meals on Wheels program has been supported by local businesses who adopt a Meals on Wheels route and deliver meals. We are blessed to have the support of Tomahawk Community Bank and Incredible Bank. Staff from these banks deliver Meals on Wheels on a weekly basis and have given staff time to ensure older adults in our community are supported.

ADRC-CW is also excited to partner with Peyton’s Promise to provide Senior Snow Day Meals locally. Senior Snow Day Meals are balanced, shelf-stable meals to be eaten by Meals on Wheels customers when the weather prevents volunteers from safely delivering meals. Ascension Sacred Heart Hospital generously covered the cost of Meals on Wheels participants in Tomahawk to receive two meals to be prepared for the times when our Wisconsin winters arrive.

Learn more about volunteering for Meals on Wheels or how your business can adopt a Meals on Wheels route by contacting the Aging and Disability Resource Center of Central Wisconsin at 715-536-0311, emailing [email protected] or visiting www.adrc-cw.org.