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Meals on Wheels delivers
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Volunteer Ruby Feil picks up Meals on Wheels lunches for delivery to Great Bend homes, Thursday morning at Central Kansas Medical Center. The program provides lunch to dozens of Barton County shut-ins every day. - photo by Susan Thacker

Seven days a week, Meals on Wheels volunteers deliver lunch to dozens of homebound ill, elderly and disabled people in Great Bend and Hoisington. The service is also available five days a week in Ellinwood, where clients can order frozen meals for the weekends, said Mary Lou Warren, chairman of the Meals on Wheels Board of Directors.

Even though this program has been managed by the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program here for many years, Warren suspects there are people who aren’t aware of the service.

"Our numbers are down," she said. In Great Bend, volunteers deliver about 26 meals a day, which is about half the number delivered just a few years ago. "We feel like there are a lot of people that could benefit from Meals on Wheels," she said. "We want to make sure that everyone that would benefit from the program is receiving meals."

Great Bend resident Varna Johnson said her mother uses the service, and Johnson finds it comforting knowing someone sees her every day. "She always gives them a big hug."

But it’s not just for the elderly. Johnson’s late husband used Meals on Wheels after undergoing heart surgery a few years ago.

"I was still working," she said. "It was very helpful. They did such a beautiful job, and the people were all so nice to him. They would look in on him and talk to him. He enjoyed it and I really appreciated it."

RSVP Director Kay Boyd said Meals on Wheels is for anyone who is unable to prepare meals for themselves, shop for a meal or get out of their home. The cost is $4.50 a day in Great Bend and Hoisington, where meals are prepared in the kitchens of Central Kansas Medical Center and Clara Barton Hospital, respectively. In Ellinwood, the cost is $5, and meals come from the Great Bend Senior Center.

Sometimes arrangements can be made for low-income elderly or disabled customers, Boyd noted. Anyone wanting more information about Meals on Wheels can call 620-792-1833. People who would like to volunteer to help may also call that number.

Warren said the meals are nutritionally balanced, with meat and a starch, a serving of milk, bread and butter, and a dessert. Clients can request custom options at the recommendation of their doctor, such as low sodium, high fiber, or meals for people with diabetes. Meals are usually delivered between 11:30 a.m. and noon.