Senior citizens in Lyme and Old Lyme who are looking for some companionship and a good hot lunch need to look no further than the Lymes’ Senior Center, next to Town Woods Park. The center is one of five locations in the Estuary Council of Seniors service area that serves up lunches for seniors and delivers meals to the homebound through the Meals on Wheels (MOW) program.
With the majority of the effort being provided by more than 175 volunteers, the Estuary Council estimates that it prepares, serves, and delivers more than 52,000 meals to homebound seniors throughout the nine-town region on both sides of the Connecticut River, plus Madison. Many more seniors enjoy a congregate lunch served daily at centers in Chester, Clinton, Old Saybrook, and Old Lyme, and on Thursdays in Westbrook.
All of the cooking is done at the Estuary Council facility in Old Saybrook. Two cooks start preparing the meals at 5 a.m. each weekday, according to Diane Baxter, nutrition coordinator. Within a few hours, food is loaded on delivery trucks and headed to the five local centers.
Gina Norman, the Estuary’s kitchen coordinator in Old Lyme, readies the Lymes’ center every morning for the next step. Volunteers start showing up soon after 9 a.m., and the prepared food arrives around 9:30. Their job is to heat up the hot food, assemble and package individual meals, and get deliveries ready to go by late morning. There’s also lunch at noon and cleanup afterward.
Two more volunteers show up to deliver the meals on two routes, one through Lyme and up to Hadlyme, the other down to the Old Lyme shoreline. Close to 30 hot lunches are delivered each day to homebound residents in Lyme and Old Lyme, according to Norman, but that number can change daily. Recipients can also request prepared frozen meals for evening or weekends.
“I’d be lost without my volunteers,” said Norman, an Old Lyme resident who has organized the kitchen and volunteers for the last six years. “We have great volunteers, but some of them go on vacation for extended periods, and we need others to help fill in. I can always use more, especially in the kitchen.”
While meals are headed out the door, the kitchen volunteers also get the center ready to serve lunch at noon. Usually 12 to 15 seniors come, Norman said, but if it’s a favorite meal like meatloaf, closer to 30 may show up. More than 50 people signed up in advance for the center’s annual corned beef and cabbage dinner a few weeks back, she said.
The recommended donation for people age 60 and older is $2.50 per meal; younger is $6.25. Disabled people younger than age 60 who receive the homebound meals qualify for the lower rate, Baxter said. People can sign up for as many or as few days a week as they need, including prepared meals delivered for them to eat over the weekend. They also can sign up for a few weeks or months, depending on their needs.
“We don’t turn people away if they don’t have money to pay,” Baxter said. “We’re not here for the money; we’re here to make sure they have a hot and nutritious meal.”
Conversely, there isn’t a needs test for eligibility for either the delivered or group meal. Norman encourages seniors who can get out and about to come over to the senior center to enjoy the company during lunch and to stay for programs and speakers. The Senior Club meets the first and third Wednesday of each month at 1:30 p.m., with bingo on the third Wednesday. There is no charge for membership.
Anyone in Old Lyme or Lyme who wants to go to the congregate meal or receive a delivered meal must call the Estuary Council office in Old Saybrook at least 24 hours beforehand, Norman said. A central database maintained by Baxter drives the daily deliveries to each of the five centers. Meal requests cannot be taken at the Lymes’ Senior Center.
“Our meal is absolutely marvelous, and we have a marvelously social congregate. We welcome people to come join us,” said Norman, herself a senior, as are most of the volunteers.
The menus are planned by Nancy Eastwood, Estuary Council nutritionist, who continually seeks ideas and feedback from recipients. Nutritionally, the meals provide one-third of Recommended Daily Allowance of nutrients, according to Baxter, and the menu, which promotes eating fruits and vegetables, is approved by the state Department of Social Services.
“It’s a fabulous service for our residents,” said Old Lyme First Selectman Tim Griswold, who stopped by the Lymes’ Senior Center on March 20, the designated day for local elected officials to help with MOW deliveries.
“It’s wonderful to see how pleased the folks are to see the driver and the food every day,” said Griswold, who has helped deliver meals in the past and plans to do so again soon. “It’s both a social and nutritional service.”
The drivers visit briefly with the client and check up on them, Norman said. If the person isn’t there, or there seems to be a problem, they report that back to her and she alerts others.
“We even saved a life last year,” she noted. One of the drivers found a 93-year-old gentleman sitting alone in his house during a severe rain storm. His caregiver was on vacation. The heat had gone out, but the oil company wouldn’t come because the basement was flooded. Norman called the police, who quickly got the fire department and oil company out there to address the problem.
“We support the Estuary Council with $30,000 a year, supporting both the nutrition and other programs for seniors,” Griswold said. There also is an elderly medical transportation service that Old Lyme funds with $3,000. That is basically donated automobiles that are used by volunteer drivers to take seniors to medical appointments. A donation is requested.
In addition, the two towns support the Lymes’ Senior Center, next to Town Woods Park and Field, with a combined budget of around $25,000 per year for operating expenses, Griswold said. Old Lyme’s share of the budget is about 79 percent and Lyme’s is 21 percent, based on a census count.
Griswold said the senior center’s annual fund-raiser campaign goes to support the compensation for the center’s part-time director, Sherry Meyers, who also serves as the Old Lyme Social Services coordinator. The visiting nurse also keeps office hours at the senior center.
Every year, MOW and the American Dietetics Association recognize March as national nutrition month and promote good nutrition. Locally, the Estuary Council MOW is holding its “Buy a Wheel” fund-raiser. Several area food markets are participating. For a $1 donation, supporters can put their name on a paper wheel. These donations will stay in the local shoreline area, Baxter said.
The MOW program gets money from the federal and state government, as well as monetary donations from individuals and organizations and fund-raising activities, she said. It also can go to the Connecticut Food Bank to get food for homebound recipients.
Volunteer MOW drivers have the option to receive some reimbursement for mileage, Baxter said, but many waive that as part of their contribution and support.
On Sunday afternoon, April 27, the Estuary Council is having its MOW volunteer appreciation celebration at Clinton Town Hall.
“It’s our way of showing appreciation for the hard work they do,” Baxter said.
To sign up for Meals on Wheels delivery in Lyme and Old Lyme or to attend the Lymes’ Senior Center lunches, call Diane Baxter at the Estuary Council in Old Saybrook at 388-1611.