Individual Volunteers
"To be successful, you have to be focused, have a plan and stick to it with the help of a great team – a strong Board, knowledgeable advisors and capable volunteers."
-- Lee Iacocca
There’s a saying that too many cooks in the kitchen can spoil the broth, but not so in our kitchen! On the contrary, our volunteers are a perfect example of cooperation and coordination. Our kitchen workers prepare full course meals under the watchful eye of our part-time staff, all in compliance with the high standards of the Board of Health.
Our volunteers are a highly motivated and remarkable group who generously share their time and talent to continue and constantly improve our service – they collectively contribute literally thousands of hours annually.
We have cooks, we have sandwich, fruit cup and salad makers, dessert makers, coordinators of delivery, and drivers, just to mention a few! We also have volunteers who work every week, some who work one or two days a month. While many of our volunteers work in the kitchen, we have others who work out of their homes.
Whatever your special talents or time constraints might be, we can use your help. Please call us and talk to us about joining our team.
Meet two of our invaluable volunteers:
Bob Lang:
Bob was inspired to become a volunteer for Meals on Wheels of Ridgefield by his mother, Rose Bahr who was a driver for 25+ years - until the age of 90! Bob occasionally filled in for his mother on bad weather days and when she passed away, he decided he’d become one of our regular drivers.
Bob enjoys the camaraderie that comes from working with the other volunteers. He says, "They are generally warm and compassionate people who make the experience very worthwhile." That same warm feeling applies to seeing our clients. While the visits are brief, they are typically delighted to see him and appreciate his words of encouragement.
Driving for Meals on Wheels has become a weekly opportunity for Bob to pay tribute to his mother, gain a great deal of gratification for a job well done and bring a smile to the many faces he sees along the way.
Betty Fitzgerald:
Once Betty’s five children left home, she decided it was time to spread her volunteer services from the school system to other parts of the community. Meals on Wheels struck her as an interesting opportunity and it just so happened they needed a sandwich maker - a skill she knew she had years of experience perfecting!
Eighteen years later she’s still friends with roast beef, chicken and egg salad, assembling about 54 sandwiches every Wednesday.
Betty says, "It has been a wonderful experience to be able to work in our professional kitchen, form great friendships and support my community. It’s really been a gift and one I could never have anticipated."