By JAN McLAUGLIN
BG Independent News
It’s not a recipe for success. Food costs continue to rise. More seniors are requesting home-delivered meals. But the funding for those nutritional meals has been reduced.
As the threat of funding cuts loom, the interim executive director of the Wood County Committee on Aging has assured local seniors that services will continue.
“We will not reduce our services no matter what kind of executive order comes out,” Nancy Orel said.
During a meeting of the WCCOA Board on Wednesday, Orel reported on the home-delivered meals program.
The costs of raw food are continuing to mushroom, with most economists predicting more increases due to President Donald Trump’s tariffs.
At the same time, the Wood County Senior Center is seeing more people in need of the home-delivered meals. Close to 1,000 meals every weekday are delivered and served up at congregate settings at the senior center sites.
Meanwhile, the funding for this year has been cut 3%, Orel said. That funding comes from the Federal Administration on Aging.
On top of those factors, Orel reported the demand for home-delivered meals is out-growing the capabilities of the WCCOA production kitchen, located at the Wood County East Gypsy Lane Complex.
“Our requests for meals keep increasing,” she said.
In addition to nutritious meals, the home-delivery program also provides seniors at home with contact with at least one human each weekday.
On the rare days when wintery weather does not allow for home deliveries, Orel reminded that each senior on the routes has been provided with two frozen meals to get them by. Plus, phone calls are made to each of those seniors to perform “health checks” on them.
In other business at the WCCOA meeting on Wednesday, Orel reported that the North Baltimore senior center site is up and running, at St. Luke’s Lutheran Church, at 215 N. Second St. in the village. Congregate meals are served at the site.
The WCCOA operates the senior center in Bowling Green, and seven satellite locations in Rossford, Perrysburg, Grand Rapids, Pemberville, Walbridge (called the Northeast site), Wayne and North Baltimore.
Requests have been made for centers to be set up in Northwood and Fostoria, but WCCOA officials are hoping residents of those communities can travel to other nearby satellites.
Also at the meeting, board member Ben Batey reported on the “very robust” applicant pool for the executive director position, formerly held by Denise Niese, who died in November.
Batey said after the meeting that 13 people had applied for the position. The first round of interviews are planned for next week.
