The news of the Senior Center closing for a deep audit this month has prompted many in the community to ask an important question: “What can we do for the seniors who depend on the center for their meals?” The answer has arrived as Big Sandy Medical Center stepped up to fill the temporary void. Leah Griffin, the CEO of the Medical Center, explains how the idea came about: “It was a group effort. Everybody had heard scuttlebutt about the Senior Center. Then, a few of them reached out to some of the board. But ultimately, it was the kitchen staff that said ‘We want to do this, and we can do this.’ The dietary staff are the ones that are stepping up and doing this. We have three cooks, and a couple of aides. every day, they’re going to put those extra meals together. Our staff is volunteering to deliver meals. We’ve also had to delivery people from the town that want to help. So it’s a group effort.”
Star Taylor, the head cook at the hospital explained, “We started talking about it when we started hearing rumors that the Center might close. We decided that we could not let the seniors in our community, who rely on these meals being taken to them, go without their meals. Last week, Leah called me and said ‘Hey, I just got wind that the center will be closing effective tomorrow, it’ll be the last day. Do you still want to do Meals on Wheels?’ (Which is at that point, what we were calling it.) I said, ‘Most definitely. We’ve got to take care of these people.’ So, a group of us met at the hospital, and we started tossing out names and what we wanted to do as far as if we want to do two meals a day? Do we want to do one meal a day? We decided we need to keep it at one meal a day. I made a list of the names and started texting people.” The initial run of meal deliveries began with four names. After two days, that number grew to five. Star explained that the list of potential recipients has grown by two or three names every day since. “We started out with five names. By the end of Wednesday, I had 10 names. And as of today I think there are fifteen names on the list.” That number includes those already receiving meals, and those they have yet to make contact with. Those who are in need of meals or who know someone who would benefit from the service should contact the Medical Center kitchen to refer them.
At this point, meals are being delivered by volunteers from the hospital staff, but both Leah and Star emphasized that those in the community wishing to volunteer are welcome to sign up for a day.
For Star and Patti Pegar, who has also been instrumental in the efforts to fill the void, this is a service that has essentially been a part of their lives for years. “I asked Patti last week weekend ’How would you feel about filling in the void left by the Senior Center closing by doing meals?’ She said: ‘oh that’s something I’ve always wanted to do!’ And I said ‘That’s kinda funny, because it’s something I’ve always wanted to do, too!’” Star went on to explain the reason is that taking care of people outside of the facility, then means a lot of times, unless it’s something major, they won’t end up in a facility.” She explained that over her 32-year career, the majority of the elderly who ended up admitted to a facility were placed because they had grown weak and unable to take care of their daily living activities due to improper nutrition. This is why providing meals to seniors is so near and dear to her. “If we can provide a well-balanced meal once a day, then it’s a whole lot better than nothing or them opening a can of soup and calling it their meal.”
The services being offered by the Big Sandy Medical Center expand the original five days a week meal service of the Senior Center to seven. In addition, the kitchen at the Medical Center is focused on the nutritional needs and challenges associated with seniors.
Seniors who receive meals from the Medical Center will continue to pay for them at the rate previously charged by the Senior Center, which is important for those living on a fixed income. This is especially the case with recent increases in food costs. The average cost per meal for the Medical Center is higher than what is being charged, but the Center will be absorbing the difference cost. Though, Star points out that the distribution of costs over a larger number of meals does distribute the expense and lower the cost per meal overall.
The concern of the kitchen staff for the seniors in the community and the larger mission and vision of the Medical Center to care for the health of the community and the seniors of our town.
