Meals on Wheels Yolo County (MOW Yolo) has served local seniors in need of nutritional support for 48 years, first as part of a St. John’s United Church of Christ program in Woodland, and by the mid-1970s as a more robust nonprofit gradually serving more of the county.
Today, MOW Yolo nourishes more than 630 food insecure, isolated seniors countywide, and is the only provider in Yolo County of predictable, regularly scheduled, fully prepared and ready-to-eat meals for seniors. No social services provider other than MOW Yolo fully meets the needs of local seniors who are unable to travel to a grocery store or other food access location, and/or are physically unable to prepare their own food and do not have family or a caregiver to assist.
The program has grown by an astounding 65% in just the past year, with as many as 12,600 meals produced and delivered each month. Yet, MOW Yolo still is serving less than 8% of the senior population estimated to be food insecure in Yolo County, per 2020 U.S. Census statistics. Capacity investment, particularly in the ability for MOW Yolo to lease and support additional kitchen space, is essential to providing healthy meals for the as many as 8,100+ who await them.
âś” With your generosity, "Operation Accelerate: Driving Kitchen Capacity" will make it possible for Meals on Wheels Yolo County to nourish thousands more seniors countywide in need of consistent nutrition and social contact.
The "Driving Kitchen Capacity" phase of the "Operation Accelerate" initiative provides for the myriad expenses related to establishing and sustaining the operations of our new, second kitchen facility in Winters, as well as continuing to maximize the food preparation capacity of MOW Yolo's pre-existing Central Kitchen in Woodland. Equipment, technology, staff, volunteer recruitment, meal delivery and transportation costs and, most importantly, FOOD, all are essential to creating nutritious, "home-cooked" meals for Yolo County's food insecure seniors. Your support on this Big Day of Giving is the link that connects MOW Yolo's actions with healthier outcomes for vulnerable, isolated aging adults in your community. This is in addition to ongoing pursuit of the original "Operation Accelerate" goals to:
- Nourish more seniors with more meals
- Nourish more nutritiously, preparing meals with more fresh and local foods
- Nourish more equitably, inclusive of ALL geographic areas of Yolo County, and with sensitivity for varying cultural approaches to senior nutrition and socialization
Yolo County thrives only when all residents are nourished, especially our elders, many of whom who've devoted their lives to shaping our community's economy and social structure. Your generous investment in Meals on Wheels Yolo County's "Operation Accelerate: Driving Kitchen Capacity" gives them hope. Aren't they worth it?