Caledon Meals on Wheels

Posted by HCIA on Wednesday, February 8, 2023 · Leave a Comment

Sharing Recipient Stories

2022 Dufferin County Food for Thought Grant Recipient
$3,000

Sharing our grant story

Reporting Period: April 1, 2022 – November 30, 2021.

Caledon Meals on Wheels (CMOW) received a $3000 grant in 2022 for the provision of additional meal subsidies for low-income eligible clients living in Orangeville and Dufferin County.

Number of persons served & number of meals provided– Caledon Meals on Wheels (CMOW) provided 10 Orangeville/Dufferin County residents (seniors, people with disabilities/ illness) in financial need with hot meals at an additional subsidy. CMOW in total provided 757 meals during this time frame.

Demographics (who was served)

100% of clients lived in Orangeville
100% income was assessed as at or below the LICO (low income cut off)
Female clients – 6; Male clients- 4
The ages ranged from 49 to 79 years of age with the average age being 66 years old.
40% of clients have a mental health disability; 20% have a physical disability
90% were older adults/seniors (55+ years old)

Total hours operated for the year – Caledon Meals on Wheels (CMOW) continued to operate throughout this time frame as per normal business hours.

Substantiation of how the grant was utilized/how the program benefited – The total grant received was $3,000 and was used exclusively to support Orangeville/ Dufferin County clients by providing subsidies experiencing financial hardships and could not afford the meals. During the reporting period of April 1, 2022 to November 31, 2022 (8 months) $5674.27 in subsidies were provided to the 10 Orangeville/ Dufferin County residents. This allowed 757 meals to be delivered to Orangeville clients in need.

Share My Story– Sophie (not her real name), has had a tough year. She lost her husband unexpectedly and tragically which left her alone, without support, and struggling with her mental health. She had to move out of the home she had shared with her husband and into an apartment, that not only was isolated but also inadequate for her needs. Without any support, and with increased isolation, her mental health deteriorated, and she was eventually connected with a local Mental Health organization who referred her to Caledon Meals on Wheels to help with her overall nutrition. Due to her recent move and her challenges with her financial and health situation, she was unable to pay for the regular meals that she needed. CMOW granted her a full subsidy for the meals until a proper financial assessment could be completed. When the financial assessment was completed, she was deemed eligible to continue to receive the subsidy. Meals were started the day after she was referred and volunteers who delivered her meals regularly reported back into the staff about how she was doing and any concerns they had about her health and well-being. Caledon Meals on Wheels and 2 other community support service providers worked closely to ensure that Sophie not only received meals when she needed them, but to ensure she received the additional social and mental health supports which helped her cope during this very challenging time in her life.

CMOW quote “Caledon Meals on Wheels has provided meals and financial subsidies for many years in Orangeville to Seniors and people with disabilities. We have seen firsthand that nutrition and social connection is so important in supporting people to live with the best possible health, and independently, in their homes for as long as possible”. Unfortunately, due to client privacy/ confidentiality we are unable provide client photos.