Committee plans kitchen expansion to grow Meals on Wheels program

Thanks in part to having pandemic-related federal dollars in the bank, the Hood County Committee on Aging is making plans to expand the kitchen at the Hood County Senior Center, which will allow the Meals on Wheels program to serve more clients.

There has been a waiting list since last fall.

“We’re maxed out in terms of what we can do in the kitchen right now,” said John Knox, preaching minister at Granbury Church of Christ, who began serving a new term on the COA in January after a three-year break. “We’re doing everything we can do with the facilities that we have. Obviously, the county is growing, and we need to be prepared for that growth.”

The expansion is in the planning stages but will involve adding onto the building, not expanding the kitchen into the already existing space. Sheriff Roger Deeds, the COA’s board president, said the committee is looking for someone with experience in building or remodeling industrial kitchens.

“We had a company come in and just give us kind of an estimate on what new equipment would cost,” said Jeanette Scott, the senior center’s executive director. That estimate came in at about $200,000, she said.

“Right now, we’ve reached the capacity in our kitchen, and we need different types of equipment that will help us cook more,” she said, echoing Knox. “I think when they built this facility, probably 25 years ago, they probably didn’t realize how many meals we’d be doing now. They planned well, because we’ve just now reached the point where we’re maxed out as to what we can cook and get out the door.”

Scott said the MOW program serves between 280-300 clients aged 60 and older. She wants the new kitchen to be large enough to serve a clientele of 600.

People are constantly going on and off the MOW client list for various reasons, she said. For instance, clients may drop off because they move into a senior care facility or a relative’s home.

Scott said that at first, people who were placed on the waiting list had to wait only a couple of days before a slot opened up. Now, it sometimes takes a bit longer, but care is taken to make sure no one goes hungry. Scott noted that anyone “in desperate need” is placed in the program immediately.

“We’ll go out and do an assessment right away,” she said. “We’re very hands-on with the people. We go to their home and talk to them (and) get a good idea of what’s going on so we can meet their needs.”

Although volunteers deliver the meals, arriving at clients’ homes between 11 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. on weekdays, professional staff handles the cooking. Three cooks arrive at the Senior Center at 5 a.m. to begin meal preparations, Scott said.

The Senior Center not only feeds MOW clients, it also offers onsite sit-down meals on weekdays for a suggested donation of $3.50. Reservations are not required. Those who participate in the congregate meals are served the same meal as MOW clients.

“It’s amazing, the amount of food they can cook in such a small space,” Scott said of the cooks, noting that 80-90 people usually show up for the sit-down meals.

Entrees include lasagna, BBQ pulled pork sandwich, chicken fajitas, beef stew, breaded fish and chicken-fried steak. There are side vegetables, a dessert, and sometimes bread or a roll.

The annual budget for the MOW program is about $850,000, Scott said, with about 30% of the budget coming from the North Central Texas Council of Governments. The rest comes from grants, contributions from the county and the city of Granbury, and community donations.

Deeds said that the COA has been able to bank some money for the expansion, largely because of COVID-19-related dollars from the federal government.

Scott said that the expansion will likely get underway in 2024.

FOOD AND FUN

Feeding seniors isn’t the Senior Center’s only purpose. There are activities that enable seniors to stay active and socialize, such as card games, line dancing, and Thursday night dances.

Scott said the Senior Center received a new grant this year from NCTCOG for its activities , and the money is funding such things as art classes and field trips. Participants loved a recent trip to The Dallas World Aquarium, she said, and an upcoming excursion will be to a strawberry farm in Pilot Point.

“So many people drive by the building and think we’re like a nursing home,” Scott said of the facility at 501 E. Moore St. “They don’t realize what goes on in here, and I just wish more people would come in and see it and volunteer, (and) support us financially, especially with our kitchen expansion that we’re going to do.”

The Senior Center’s calendar and menu can be viewed online at mowhctx.org or on the Hood County Senior Center’s Facebook page.

“We’d love for those interested to stop by for a tour and pick up a calendar so they can get involved in our activities,” Scott stated.

SECOND MOW PROGRAM

Meals on Wheels North Central Texas has this year expanded to include Hood and Somervell counties in addition to Johnson, Ellis and Navarro counties, but it largely serves a different clientele than the program that has been in place here for years.

The North Central Texas MOW program involves clients who have been referred by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission. Those home-delivered meals are for homebound or disabled adults 18 and older who qualify through HHSC.

Contact Haley Seale can be reached at 888-869-6325 or haley@mownct.org.

The Hood County Senior Center can be reached at 817-573-5533.