SAN ANGELO, Texas — A small army of volunteers hit the road each and every day, delivering meals to the elderly and homebound throughout San Angelo and the surrounding areas in the Concho Valley.
This week, Meals For The Elderly is hosting its annual Community of Champions event, an opportunity to show the community what the organization does.
"We can tell people all day long we deliver to the homebound, we, you know, deliver meals but when they go out and they actually get to see the recipients and the smiles on their faces and the thank-yous that they get, it's so much more impactful," Meals For The Elderly Director of Development and Marketing, Jessica Behringer, said.
On Sept. 19, and again on Sept. 21, community members, including educators, nonprofit leaders and elected officials are teaming up with volunteers from Meals For The Elderly, delivering meals and making a positive impact in their community.
Among those volunteers is Jeremy Black, who says dropping off food is just part of the way he and other volunteers are making a difference.
"Not only providing them with a meal but, you know, just a 'how you doing,' you know, 'how things going.' It's just... kind of having that face-to-face communication that a lot of them may, you know, not get otherwise," he said.
For those who receive a meal from the organization, they say getting the food is great but what they really look forward to is that human-to-human interaction.
"The experience is not the food that they serve it's the people that bring it, that's my gift" Calvin Walker, one of the recipients on Black's route, said.
There is large demand for the service offered by Meals For The Elderly. Volunteers deliver between 600 and 700 meals each week.
Behringer says the organization is always looking for more volunteers and donations are always accepted.