The Meals on Wheels (Bermuda) charity will reach an important milestone this month when the organisation celebrates its 25th birthday with a luncheon at St. Paul's Christian Education Centre for its past and present volunteers.
October 15 marks 25 years since the charity was formed by co-founders Dorothy Evans and Kay Robinson in 1975. And it is fitting that St. Paul's, whose kitchen the charity used for 18 years to prepare the meals, should be the venue for the luncheon.
The church was their first home after the charity spent the first 18 months of its existence buying meals from the kitchen of the King Edward VII Memorial Hospital three days a week to serve to 15 needy people in the central parishes.
Nowadays, thanks in no small part to a spacious kitchen and a dedicated team of volunteers, some 160 meals a day or 640 a week are prepared and distributed over 13 routes Island-wide four days a week.
The charity was born when, after spending some time in Canada and the United States, English-born Mrs. Evans was introduced to Meals on Wheels and immediately saw it as a service that would benefit the local community.
After giving it some serious thought and making exhaustive inquiries she co-opted the help of Mrs. Robinson and the rest, as they say, is history with the service launched on October 15, 1975.
In those days the women made deliveries mostly to elderly men living alone who had no means of getting decent meals. The meals came from the Hospital's kitchen and a charge of $1.50 was charged for the three-course meal, the same price charged by the hospital.
Within two years the charity was preparing it's own food in a small kitchen at St. Paul's.
"We started off with a small corner of their storeroom and ended up with the whole of the storeroom,'' Mrs. Evans recalled.
"We moved there on a temporary basis and stayed there 18 years. They desperately wanted us out of there because they wanted the space, but on the other hand they were sorry to see us go. We had become part and parcel of St.
Paul's Church, in a way.'' Mrs. Evans explained that Meals on Wheels actually started in Britain during war times.
"During the war in Britain I did canteen work where we had mobile canteens and we went around to the bomb sites serving the fire fighters or policemen on duty in bombing raids,'' she stated.
"As a result of that Meals on Wheels evolved.'' The idea caught on in Bermuda as a need was quickly identified and the two founders set about forming a committee of volunteers.
"Some stayed with us and some decided it wasn't their bag, as they put it,'' explained Mrs. Robinson.
"We have elections every year and have a rotating system on the committee so that the two longest standing members automatically rotate off with two new members going on each year.'' Early into their time at St. Paul's the need for a bigger facility was recognised as the number of meals increased. By the time they found a vacant piece of property across from Modern Mart in Paget, they were already delivering meals Island-wide. The price of the meals has risen to $3, still the cheapest, the women point out.
They are prepared specially for diabetic, dialysis patients or others with special needs, with both the meals and deserts coded to identify those needs.
Many of the people they serve have just been released from Hospital so their doctor is consulted as to their special dietary needs, with a form filled out.
Some clients remain on the charity's list for many years until going into one of the retirement homes, and the volunteers are known to build a bond with many of them.
"So many people say they enjoy doing it, they get attached to their clients and will visit them on other days of the week,'' Mrs. Evans revealed.
"One particular gentleman, who is not very old, had a stroke at an early age and we serve him. He's quite a character,'' added Mrs. Robinson.
"They (volunteers) get very interested in the people they serve.'' Referrals come from doctors, nurses, families, the Hospital and social workers and meals are prepared four mornings a week with delivery by some 26 volunteers starting between 11.15 and 11.30 a.m. On each day there are about 38 workers making it all possible, including a dispatcher, two helpers in the kitchen, five cooks, three washing dishes and an administrator, Barbara Frith, who is in charge of the volunteers.
"She's got her finger on most things,'' says Mrs. Robinson who appreciates the work that goes into the job as both she and Mrs. Evans have performed most of the tasks.
"Both of us have done everything, which gives us a wonderful background. Been there, done that.'' The property on which the Meals on Wheels building was built was purchased for $180,000 in May, 1993. And by the time they moved in in 1996 the building was completely paid for, thanks to money raised by the Fund Raising Committee which Donald Lines chaired. That plot of land was almost purchased by Government for the new Paget Post Office, but the Meals on Wheels trustees were a couple of steps ahead of them.
The building was officially opened 21 years to the day that the charity was formed and now they are preparing to mark the 25th birthday as a special occasion.
"We had the idea of owning our own place almost from the time we moved out of the hospital,'' said Mrs. Robinson. "We looked at a lot of different places.'' "We do get a grant from Government and it helps,'' said Mrs. Evans.
Best price in Bermuda! "We're very well funded, with a very good investment, as a result of the campaign that was chaired by Donald Lines and astute treasurers over the years.'' The Governor, Thorold Masefield and Mrs. Masefield will attend the October 12 luncheon while the guest speaker will be Lady Blackman (the former Norma Astwood) who is returning from Barbados. She was the charity's first president and when she moved to Barbados she resigned the post. The president is now Walwyn Hughes.
Other invited guests include Nelson Bascome, Minister of Health and Social Services while Donald Lines and his wife, Janine, a past volunteer, will also be in attendance.
On Sunday, October 15, the past and present volunteers are invited to attend a church service at St. Paul's Christian Church.
Photos by Nigel Richardson Mealtime: Volunteers Marianne Collier (left) and Sharyn Ann Finlay at work in the spacious Meals on Wheels kitchen. Meals are delivered four times a week.
Home sweet home: This location across from Modern Mart has been home for the Meals on Wheel charity for four years.
Founding members: Kay Robinson (left) and Dorothy Evans who started the Meals on Wheels charity 25 years ago, when meals were purchased from the Hospital and delivered to 15 homes.
