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On may 1, 1984,
Cherokee
County meals on Wheels was
born.
The outreach ministry was organized by the Gaffney
Ministerial Association to meet a definite need among the elderly and
handicapped of Cherokee County.
Serving as chairman of the board for three years was the late Rev. Herb
Bailey. Dean Ross and Charles Hamrick, two of the original board
members, are still serving in some capacity today.
Twenty
meals were served daily in 1984. Then meals were purchased from the
hospital and Mary’s Diner in
Blacksburg. The first seven routes were delivered
by just 15 volunteers and two of those volunteers – Mary Bolinger and
Goldie McCraw - are still delivering.
We served meals out of
Cherokee
Avenue
Baptist
Church for a short time.
We then moved into the small building, next to First Baptist
Church, which they donated
to us for $1 a month.
Our budget for our first year was $14,776.35.
Currently Meals on Wheels is delivering 400 meals daily with 410
volunteers. Our budget for 2008 is $229,200, all of which comes from
donations. We receive no government support, nor do we charge our
recipients.
We have a full-time director, a full-time assistant
director and volunteer coordinator. We also
have a kitchen manager and two part-time cooks. There are 24 members on
our board of directors who are responsible stewards of our resources and
operate with the highest levels of accountability.
The Meals on Wheels building was dedicated May 1,
1994, and with the support of our community, we moved into the building
debt-free.
The meals are prepared in our own kitchen, located
at 403 W. Montgomery St. Our partnership with Nestle Frozen Food has
made a tremendous impact on the cost of preparing the food. A meal costs
us $2.25 per person and supplies 1/3 of the nutritional requirements for
a senior adult. The meal includes a choice of milk or juice.
Our purpose is not simply to provide meals, but to
minister in other areas of the recipient’s life as needs are observed.
Birthday flowers, holiday gifts, extra food, magazines, pet food, fans,
toiletry items, smoke detectors, “ensure” for cancer patients and
special donated homemade items are often donated.
Your help is needed. Volunteers are the lifelines
of Meals on Wheels. They are using their time to fill a void in
someone’s life. It only takes one lunch hour per week to lend a hand to
our neighbors in need. Delivering food and companionship to someone in
need is a beautiful and powerful symbol of caring and generosity.
Together we can provide nutritious meals and friendship to the elderly
and our disabled neighbors.
Thanks to donations and the work of our faithful
volunteers, we continue to make a difference in hundreds of lives each
day.
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