Jenny Bertolette, vice president of communications at Meals on Wheels, said it saw “an nearly 500 percent jump in volunteer sign-ups” through their website AmericaLetsDoLunch.org.
Advertisement
All the Meals on Wheels provider organizations are different.
Meals on Wheels also said people used the Twitter hashtag #MealsOnWheels or mentioned the organization on Twitter about 9,000 times an hour on Thursday.
Other directors of IL meals-on-wheels programs said they feared the worst – from reductions in meal services to layoffs for already thin program staff to unfair and irresponsible treatment of seniors. “It’s reassuring that the public has stepped up”.
Case explained that her local Meals on Wheels operates like many others, through a number of different funding sources. Meals on Wheels programs nationally get 35 percent of their funding through Older American Act funding, according to a press release from the national office. The fear factor in the US needs to stop. Just getting the meals they need can be a struggle, and for many, Meals on Wheels has been the answer. Human Services Association does rely on federal money, so a loss of funding could lead to significant service reductions.
“Our population is aging and we need to increase the services to our seniors”, she said.
A lifeline for senior citizens is facing funding problems.
“I think it’s sad”, she said. The Community Development Block Grants provided by the Department of Housing and Urban Development would be eliminated completely.
“We’ve spent $150 billion on those programs since the 1970s”, Mulvaney said, referring to the block grants.
After the White House suggested “deep cuts” to Meals on Wheels, a nonprofit that serves 2.4 million people nutritious meals across the country, there was a general sense of alarm on social media on Thursday. That’s why, instead of standing up and cooking his own meals, going out to eat or shopping for groceries, he started using San Antonio’s local Meals on Wheels program three years ago. “It’s a gift for the parents to know the kids are part of this incredible program making sure that we do our part to take care of our community”. “To think of a cut, any amount of cut is really risky”.
The budget proposal did not say how the cut would affect the Administration for Community Living, the HHS agency that funds nutrition programs for the elderly, Meals on Wheels spokeswoman Jenny Bertolette said.
Meals on Wheels claimed on their website that it would be hard to imagine a scenario where the next federal budget would not have an impact on the services they provide.
“We would not be able to have the programs at the same level as we do now without that grant”, she said. And he thinks some of the budget cuts and other ongoing efforts will make more jobs available.
“That’s what we really count on, for the business community to reach out and support us”, he said. Due to the new budget plan, people obviously heard of the possible issue that would result in federal funds being taken down or completely away from Meals on Wheels. Or simply volunteer your lunch hour with its Let’s Do Lunch program, which asks volunteers to deliver a quick meal and visit with a senior nearby over their lunch break.
Earlier this week, President Donald Trump finally released his long-awaited budget proposal and it was just as cruel as expected.
Advertisement
The New York Times dug into Mulvaney’s claim that programs like Meals on Wheels weren’t working. “It is one I would never vote to cut even one dollar”.
