Meals on Wheels volunteers have been delivering in Bloomington for 50 years

Norm Crampton
·3 min read
Michelle Liptak (left) and Pat Winter hoist their box of food from Meals on Wheels headquarters on North Walnut Street into Liptak's vehicle. The food is prepared each morning in kitchens at IU Health Bloomington Hospital and at Meadowood Retirement Community.
Michelle Liptak (left) and Pat Winter hoist their box of food from Meals on Wheels headquarters on North Walnut Street into Liptak's vehicle. The food is prepared each morning in kitchens at IU Health Bloomington Hospital and at Meadowood Retirement Community.

I’m tagging along with Michelle Liptak and Pat Winter as the two volunteers for Bloomington Meals on Wheels drive Liptak’s car to drop off a hot meal plus a bag of snacks at the front doors of the 11 people living along Route 2 on the south side of Bloomington.

It’s a cold February morning near noon, and their clients are waiting for an essential delivery. Meals on Wheels (MOW) serves people who, because of health or mobility issues, are unable to prepare meals for themselves. A physician has certified each recipient’s need.

Some recipients have been on the delivery routes for years, others only a short time. For Liptak and Winter, it's a labor of love. They’ve each been MOW volunteers for a dozen years and are among the 300 or so Bloomington-area men and women who drive routes each month.

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As MOW celebrates 50 years of service to Bloomington this month, executive director Carrie McHaley wants to make sure the volunteers get the recognition they deserve.

“I feel so fortunate to be part of such an important organization in Bloomington,” McHaley says.  “Again and again, I’m overwhelmed with gratitude for the support we receive from our volunteers and the community to help their homebound neighbors.”

Each weekday, MOW volunteers — using their own vehicles — drive nine routes, delivering meals to the current total of 108 recipients. Seven of the routes run from MOW headquarters on North Walnut Street and two run from the Meadowood Senior Living Community, on Tamarack Trail.

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The service is provided to the ill, disabled, or elderly without regard to income. McHaley notes that Meals On Wheels makes it possible for many people to remain in their homes while they deal with illness and disability, saving the expense of being cared for elsewhere.

MOW, an independent, nonprofit organization, has an annual budget of about $240,000, McHaley says. Most of the operating income comes from the people who receive meals. Each pays $7 a day, or $35 a week, for the five weekday deliveries. The rest of the revenue comes mostly from donations.

McHaley and Stephanie Lowinger, the program coordinator, work halftime and are the only paid staff.

Carrie McHaley (left), executive director of Bloomington Meals on Wheels, checks the inventory of canned goods with Stephanie Lowinger, program coordinator. In addition to hot meals, volunteers also bring sandwiches, fruit, or canned goods for later in the day or the weekend.
Carrie McHaley (left), executive director of Bloomington Meals on Wheels, checks the inventory of canned goods with Stephanie Lowinger, program coordinator. In addition to hot meals, volunteers also bring sandwiches, fruit, or canned goods for later in the day or the weekend.

But back to Liptak and Winter, driving their route:

At the next stop, Liptak asks Winter, “Remind me, do I knock or ring the bell?” They want to follow their clients’ preferences for announcing a delivery.

Things were different before COVID they recall. For many clients, the MOW delivery may be the only connection with another person that day. And before the pandemic, it seemed OK for a delivery volunteer to step inside for a moment’s chat. Since COVID, everything’s done outside the front door.

But that doesn’t stop Winter and Liptak from extra services, like fetching a client’s mail from the box at the street or the newspaper lying on the drive.

Pat Winter speaks to a client while making the midday delivery along a Meals on Wheels route on the south side of Bloomington.
Pat Winter speaks to a client while making the midday delivery along a Meals on Wheels route on the south side of Bloomington.

There’s seldom much excitement along the route on a weekday around noon, the delivery ladies report. Oh, there was that day when they had to stop quickly to avoid hitting a dog on the loose.

“We brake for all animals,” Winter declares as a squirrel skitters away.

Like all MOW drivers, the first thing Liptak and Winter did before driving out today was “check the book” at the MOW office for names and addresses that have been added or dropped from their route since the last time out. Two other volunteers help with those details: Mary Sutherland, the client coordinator; and Cheryl Engber, the volunteer coordinator.

It’s taken a little over an hour for Liptak and Winter to finish the route, and they head back to the MOW office on North Walnut to return the delivery boxes, which will be cleaned and filled and marked for other volunteer drivers the next day.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Bloomington's Meals on Wheels program celebrates 50 years