Helping hand: Laura Chatfield, Moira Shire volunteer coordinator for Meals on Wheels.
Photo by
Gabriel Garcia
Two hundred clients a day.
Hold tight - we’re checking permissions before loading more content
That’s how many people Meals on Wheelsvolunteer coordinator Laura Chatfield caters for.
Her operation runs through the entire Moira Shire as well as parts of the Berrigan Shire and she has more than 300 volunteers working under her, with a mixture of the elderly, retirees and young people helping out when they can.
As for the clientele, Ms Chatfield said most were elderly.
“Some of them would have just had a fall or would have had an operation and they need meals short-term,” Ms Chatfield said.
However, some are more long-term.
For some of these clients, Meals on Wheels helps them avoid having to relocate to a retirement village.
“This way they can live at home a bit longer” Ms Chatfield said.
Though Meals on Wheels in Moira Shire only serves one meal a day — a warm cooked lunch — it is a generous one.
“It's a three-course meal. They normally get a soup and then a main meal, which is always different, and then a dessert and then they get a juice on a Monday or Friday,” Ms Chatfield said.
Meals cost $10 each, with the rest of the cost covered by the government, and they are collected by volunteers at one of four hospitals in the Moira Shire.
The four hospitals involved are situated in Yarrawonga, Cobram, Numurkah and Nathalia.
Fresh food daily: Warm three-course lunches are prepared by more than 300 volunteers.
Photo by
steve Huntley
Unlike in other parts of Australia, Meals on Wheels in the Moira Shire has its food cooked at local hospitals. It was decided the hospitals had the facilities and could better cater to dietary restrictions.
Somewhat surprisingly, unlike other charity organisations like FoodShare and the Salvation Army, Meals on Wheels had not seen an increase in clientele due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
As for volunteering, Ms Chatfield says it is a rewarding experience that allows people to connect with the community and for people who don’t have regular, daily social interactions to feel like they belong.
“It's really nice actually. I've done it a lot myself (delivering meals). I’ve taken my younger kids with me ... you are checking up on them and just delivering them a meal which is a big help. Most of them are very grateful,” Ms Chatfield said.
Meals on Wheels has operated across Australia for more than 65 years.
12°C