Food for thought
The Rev. Don Austin says a quick prayer with Mary Towchick after delivering her meal. Austin has been the director of the Canonsburg-Houston Area Meals on Wheels program for close to two decades.
The Rev. Don Austin hands a meal to Magda Gibbs Brown in her apartment at Canon House in Canonsburg while delivering Meals on Wheels. The Canonsburg-Houston Area Meals on Wheels program delivers between 12,000 and 15,000 meals each year.
Darlene Taylor pours peas into a pot while preparing a meal. Taylor is one of about 100 volunteers who cook and deliver meals five days a week.
Ralph Marino, a volunteer with Houston United Methodist Church, packages a roll and butter for Meals on Wheels.
The Rev. Don Austin loads up his car with meals to be delivered to Canonsburg and Houston residents. The meals are prepared at First United Presbyterian Church in Houston by volunteers before being delivered to residents.
A large calendar in First United Presbyterian Church’s kitchen is used to plan out meals and volunteers for the week.
CANONSBURG – The Rev. Don Austin knocks on the door of Magda Gibbs Brown’s apartment at the Canon House in Canonsburg and waits for her daughter, Laverne Gibbs, to open it.
He wishes Brown good morning and sets a brown paper bag and a foil container of food on the counter.
“Thank you,” says Brown, 94, as she sits at the kitchen table. “Why, that’s very nice of you.”
The Canonsburg-Houston Area Meals on Wheels program delivers between 12,000 and 15,000 meals each year to about 70 homebound seniors, including Brown, who worked at RCA and served as a crossing guard for years, and now has dementia.
Each meal is freshly prepared in the kitchen of First United Presbyterian Church, Houston, by cooking teams from Washington County church congregations.
“I think it’s great that there are people who volunteer to make sure the elderly get at least one meal a day. It’s helpful,” said Gibbs, who prepares breakfast and dinner for her mother daily and relies on Meals on Wheels to make sure Brown has a meal while Gibbs completes her route as a school bus driver. “My brothers and sisters and I don’t let her cook at all anymore.”
Austin, who has served as director of the program for nearly two decades, said Meals on Wheels has about 100 volunteers who cook and deliver the meals five days a week, year-round.
“It comes in handy when you’re not able to do for yourself anymore,” said Violet Crow of Canonsburg, who was a homemaker and raised four children. “It’s a help.”
Meals on Wheels suggests people donate $2 per meal, but if recipients don’t have the money, Austin said they can donate whatever they can, or they don’t have to pay at all.
Meals on Wheels operates on a $60,000 annual budget and does not receive state or federal funding. The shoestring budget is funded by donations given for the meals, donations from churches, organizations and businesses and, occasionally, fundraisers.
The program received about $5,000 less last year than it did in 2015, and Austin said if it doesn’t raise more money in 2017, “We really will be in a tight spot.”
On a recent Thursday, a team of five women prepared beef and noodles, served with carrots, a banana, applesauce, bread, juice and dessert.
They joked that they “solve the problems of the world” as they cook, and said their volunteer work is rewarding.
Mary Skirpan has served as a volunteer cook for 13 years, and was a Meals on Wheels driver for four years before she switched to the kitchen.
She said the program enables many seniors who can no longer shop or safely cook to remain independent and live in their own homes or apartments.
“When you deliver the food, you can see why you do it. There is such a need,” Skirpan said. “Some should be in a nursing home, and these meals help keep them out of there.”
Carol Cox of St. Patrick Parish, who has volunteered for eight years, said, “The people look forward to you coming. They show you pictures of their children and grandchildren. Sometimes, you are the only person they see during the day.”
Austin spends a few minutes chatting with each Meals on Wheels recipient, and prays with them before he heads to the next home.
The daily Meals on Wheels deliveries also ensure that someone is looking in on seniors regularly and delivering nutritious lunches.
Austin recalled a situation where a concerned Meals on Wheels driver entered an apartment after the recipient, who always came to the door, did not answer when he arrived. The elderly resident had suffered a medical emergency, and the Meals on Wheels driver notified 911.
This year marks the 54th anniversary of Canonsburg-Houston Area Meals on Wheels, which began as an outreach ministry at First United.
“To this day, all meals are prepared here, and some of the teams purchase their own food, which is helpful to our budget,” said Austin. “By 8 a.m., there is always a full quota of people here, cooking and preparing bags. There’s one team that comes in, and they prepare the greatest meatloaf on earth. Another team’s set menu is creamed chicken over biscuits. There is no shortage of excellent cooks.”
There is, however, a need for volunteers and donations. Anyone interested in volunteering or contributing to the Canonsburg-Houston Area Meals on Wheels can send a check to Meals on Wheels at First United Methodist Church, 121 N. Main St., Houston, PA 15342, or call 724-746-3040, ext. 314.