I started delivering meals during my lunch hour while working for IBM in 2000. It was super simple. When someone is trying to dip their toe into volunteering, Meals on Wheels delivery is a perfect start. The commitment can be as little as once a month delivery for an hour. We all have an hour!
While on maternity leave, I delivered meals with Sawyer in tow. The clients remembered my son and asked about him! During the summer or spring break, I would bring Sawyer along.
Over the years, I met a wife of a diplomat who had lived all over the world and loved the New York Times. There was a man who loved to wait for his lunch out in a chair on his driveway. He usually watered while he waited. I always made sure the hose was off as he carried his meal inside. A knitter always had projects to share!
If the route was close to Valentine’s Day, we always tried to give them a simple card. The smiles from this small gesture were priceless!
One day I was to do the route without my partner and a meeting popped up on my calendar. I thought it would be a short conference call but I ended up being late. Each and every client said, “I thought I was forgotten.“ From that day forward, I blocked my calendar.
I grew to know how long to wait at each door. As I waited, I said a prayer for the client. For some clients this is the last days of their journey on earth. Some are removed from the list when they move to assisted living and others may just be on temporarily. We are NOT to be attached to the clients but for me that is like saying don’t let ice cream melt when it’s 100 degrees. The goal with each delivery is to bestow compassion, empathy and love as I deliver.
Please feel free to ask me questions. Peace has Meals on Wheels routes. To become a driver reach out.
Jan Massa
April 2018