Meals on Wheels fights hunger and isolation in Pike County
Lords Valley. Throughout March, the Pike County Area Agency on Aging is raising awareness of a program that 140 senior citizens in the county depend on. Volunteers are always needed to help prepare and deliver meals, and provide seniors with the friendly visits and safety checks that allow them to stay healthy and independent at home.
Milford /
| 04 Mar 2020 | 10:09
Pictured (from left): Jill Gamboni of Representative Michael Peifer's Office, Pike County Commissioner Ronald Schmalzle, Area Agency on Aging Executive Director Robin Skibber, Pike County Commissioner Steve Guccini, and Area Agency on Aging Intern Aleaha Wacker of Priority Nutrition Care. (
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The Pike County Home Delivered Meal Program is participating in the annual March for Meals, a month-long, nationwide celebration of Meal on Wheels and the senior citizens who rely on this vital service to stay healthy and independent at home.
”The services that we provide the seniors of Pike County are critical and the need is rapidly increasing,” said Robin S. Skibber, a licensed dietitian and nutritionist and the executive director of the Pike County Area Agency on Aging. “Together, we can keep seniors living independently, healthier at home and feeling more connected to their community as they age. It not only makes economic sense to enable seniors to stay healthy and safe at home, but it improves the health and vibrancy of our communities and our nation at large.”
Activities will be held throughout March. State, county, and township officials will deliver meals to local citizens in the program and help to prepare meals.
The program consists of 11 routes that serve all of Pike County. Daily deliveries are made to more than 140 senior citizens with the help of volunteer drivers, and volunteers who come to the senior center kitchen and help with meal preparation. Senior citizens not only get nutritious meals, but friendly visits and safety checks through the daily deliveries.
"The volunteers are the heartbeat that helps keep this program alive," said Skibber. "Our limited funding from lottery dollars and donations assist us with this program. In recent years due to increasing cost of this vital program, we have had to downsize our days of delivery to maintain the integrity of the food we serve. Our wish list for this program is an increase in donations and volunteers."
For information on how you can volunteer at the Pike County Area Agency on Aging, call 570-775-5550 ext. 1303 or email svanorden@pikepa.org.
To make a donation to further the cause of the Pike County Home Delivered Meals, visit pikeaaa.org and click on the donate link.
About March for Meals
March for Meals commemorates the historic day in March 1972 when President Nixon signed into law a measure that amended the Older Americans Act of 1965 to include a national nutrition program for seniors 60 years and older. Since 2002, community-based Meals on Wheels programs from across the country have joined forces for the annual awareness campaign to celebrate this successful public-private partnership and garner the support needed to fill the gap between the seniors served and those still in need. Ellie Hollander, President and CEO of Meals on Wheels America, noted that 12,000 Americans are turning 60 each day.
"The volunteers are the heartbeat that helps keep this program alive. Our limited funding from lottery dollars and donations assist us with this program. In recent years due to increasing cost of this vital program, we have had to downsize our days of delivery to maintain the integrity of the food we serve. Our wish list for this program is an increase in donations and volunteers." --Robin S. Skibber, Pike County Area Agency on Aging