Anna Pitman and Megan McDaniel had been at work since 6 a.m. Wednesday, but they got to do something that afternoon — that normally doesn’t happen.
They got to sit down and enjoy a box lunch prepared just for them.
Usually, it’s the other way around.
Pitman is the head cook at Meals on Wheels in Star City, and McDaniel runs the kitchen.
On this afternoon, they celebrated. Partied, a bit.
The organization that provides outreach in every sense of the word is marking its 50th anniversary this year, and the birthday party was planned in conjunction with the annual business meeting that day.
Volunteers and staffers filled a conference room in the Meals on Wheel headquarters, located in the former Star City United Methodist Church, a 1916-vintage building on University Avenue.
Lunch was courtesy of PACE Enterprises Beehive Café. A giant birthday cake was cut into for dessert.
Mainly they just enjoyed each other’s company.
All are kindred spirits, in a shared mission to brighten someone’s day, while keeping food insecurity at the gate, besides.
The personal contact sticks with you, they’ll say.
Just like the caloric intake.
In other words, it’s not just the meals. It’s the moments that are delivered with them.
“I love interacting with people,” said Chuck Clovis, who has been a delivery driver for the past couple of years.
“You know they appreciate it. Makes my day, I can tell you.”
And sometimes, it makes all the difference.
Drivers over the years have acted when their clients have been knocked by diabetic crashes, unable to answer the knock on the door.
They’ve switched out batteries in beeping smoke detectors while retrieving wayward dogs and cats – and they’ve been known to call 911 when they have to.
In one story, famous in Meals on Wheels lore, a driver, who regularly delivered to an elderly couple who both have mobility issues, dropped off her food in the middle of a frantic, scary episode.
The woman’s husband had fallen in the basement.
She couldn’t help him, and she couldn’t reach her daughter by telephone.
Meanwhile, the driver checked on the husband and sent a text message to the couple’s daughter – who immediately responded and came to her parents’ aid.
Minutes later, said couple was digging into their repast from Meals on Wheels.
If you think the offerings are sandwiches in bags or waxed paper, think again, said Kathy Molnar, the organization’s executive director.
Meals on Wheels caters to its clients, she said.
Pitman, McDaniel and others in the kitchen are fully checked out on the latest in nutrition and dietary needs, Molnar said.
There’s low-salt fare, and meals for diabetics and the gluten-sensitive.
“We even have a couple of vegetarians,” she said.
While it costs around $12 to prepare a daily meal, the organization gets a lot of help through community trusts and corporate altruism, she said.
Recipients normally won’t pay more than $7 for their meal, she said.
A $31,000 outlay on last year’s ledger was particularly heartwarming, Molnar said.
That’s how much was donated by private citizens, she reports.
Nearly 21,000 meals went out last year, she said, to seniors and others who might not have enjoyed nutritional dining otherwise.
Not even a pandemic could stop them, the executive director said.
“We were one of the few places that didn’t close.”
And that menu?
Well, Pitman said, one can have a peanut butter sandwich anytime.
That 50th anniversary celebration may have been in the afternoon, but meals still had to go out that morning.
“We did beef enchiladas today,” Pitman said.
“I’m always looking for new ideas.”
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