Volunteer Voice Fall 2019

Catholic Charities Senior Dining has been providing services in the St. Cloud area since 1965. Meals on Wheels, a program of Catholic Charities, provides a hot meal five days a week for persons who are homebound or in need of rehabilitation time while receiving cancer treatments, or following surgery, injury or illness.

Senior Dining ensures that any senior 60 or better has access to a daily meal regardless of their ability or willingness to pay. To do this we depend on volunteers who help with the distribution of meals within the program. Volunteer drivers are needed to deliver meals to the homes of seniors who are homebound; not only do they provide a daily hot, nutritious meal, but also an informal safety check to make sure the person is physically able to come to the door. For some, this volunteer may be the only person a senior sees that day. That brief interaction helps to combat isolation and loneliness. Volunteer drivers play a critical role in the program and the lives of seniors!

Donald “Buzz” Buzzell has been a volunteer with Meals on Wheels for more than 10 years, volunteering two days a week. Buzz signed up to be a volunteer with Catholic Charities because he had the time available and he loves interacting with others. He encourages others to volunteer because he has found that it is a great opportunity to socialize with the Meals on Wheels recipients and with other drivers. He has made many new friends and met some interesting people while delivering meals. Not only has volunteering with Meals on Wheels enriched Buzz’s life, but there have been countless seniors over the years who attribute the Meals on Wheels experience to a better quality of life. None of this would be possible without volunteers like Buzz!

Meals on Wheels has an ongoing need for volunteer drivers in many of our communities. We also have an ongoing need for volunteers to help with meal service at our congregate dining sites. Without our volunteers, we would not be able to provide the kind of service and personal touch we take pride in.

New to our program is the opportunity to volunteer for food pick up at local Kwik Trip locations and delivery to our dining locations. Kwik Trip’s excess inventory is donated to the program and used in the preparation of meals. On Tuesdays and Fridays we have a need for individuals to pick up food items between 8:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. at multiple Kwik Trip locations. The donated food is then delivered to our Roosevelt Road location to be further distributed throughout Senior Dining communities.

If you have an interest in volunteering with Senior Dining, please visit the Catholic Charities website at ccstcloud.org and click on the Volunteer tab to sign up. The seniors in our community are counting on you!

Volunteer Voice is a publication for volunteers of Catholic Charities of the Diocese of St. Cloud