Originally an entirely church-staffed organization, Meals on Wheels has been providing food to residents of Arlington for more than 30 years. Except for one person who is hired ‘very’ part time to recruit new volunteers, the organization is now operated entirely by committed volunteers from churches, civic organizations, businesses, and neighborhoods. Our mission is to provide food to the homebound who are incapacitated by illness, injury, or age. We deliver a hot meal and a cold bagged lunch five times a week to each client. Some clients are long term while others receive our service for short periods of time during recuperation from illnesses or surgeries. We provide the service without respect to age, race, sex, or ability to pay. The Agency on Aging provides support in this mission, both financial and administrative, and we work in concert with them in many aspects.

Our needs at present are not financial. Our greatest need is for a continuing stream of new drivers/runners since our roster continually changes. The commitment for a volunteer to deliver one day is approximately 2 hours. There are positions available as dispatchers and collectors, each requiring approximately 3 hours once a month. At present, several churches are seeking new church coordinators. The coordinator would spend 1-2 hours each month scheduling that church’s volunteers into delivery slots and would be responsible for recruiting new volunteers from within the church. We encourage you to contact us at mowvolunteer@yahoo.com or at our intake number, 703-522-0811 to get more information about how your community of faith can help.

You can also assist us by referring your members in need to us. We know there are aged and infirmed people in Arlington who would benefit from having Meals on Wheels and who are not currently being served. We depend upon social workers, churches, family members, neighbors, and others to make the necessary contact with us. The ONLY restriction we have is that the person is homebound and unable to shop or prepare food.

Meals on Wheels is a terrific organization where you can make a difference in someone’s life. Remember that giving of yourself is the ultimate gift. It will return to you over and over again!