Meals on Wheels delivers more than lunch

“You go, you pick up food and deliver for an hour and a half,” she said. “They even give you a free meal if you want it. The food is fantastic — Sophia (Homan) is a great cook, and it takes an hour and a half out of your morning to make someone’s day.”

The program, run by the Hood River Valley Adult Center, brings hot meals to homebound and disabled seniors in the area and is always looking for reliable drivers, as well as substitute drivers who could be available with only a couple of hours’ notice, said HRVAC Executive Director Amy Mallet.

“(Substitute drivers) are so valuable when a regular driver calls in sick,” Mallet said.

Sheppard and her husband, Benjamin, both work fulltime for EOSSB and deliver meals each week as well as serve as substitute drivers.

“My husband and I, we’re the snow kids,” Sheppard said. “Most elderly drivers don’t want to drive in the snow. We’ll do two routes if we have to.”

She said that her average route is 15-17 stops, and that the routes have changed a lot in the last two years because of increased need. What was previously a three-route schedule is now five.

One overlooked aspect of the Meals on Wheels program is that drivers serve an additional role as check-in person.

“Sometimes, you’re the only person who checks on (the meal recipient),” said Sheppard. “I have literally called the cops and done a welfare check, and that person had died. You serve as a safety net for them — one of our drivers found one of our clients on the floor. They’d been on the floor for 24 hours and (the driver) saved her life — she went to the hospital because he found her.”

While potentially a scary aspect of the volunteer position, Sheppard sees it as another form of service.

“To be able to knock on the door and call for them, that’s saved people’s lives many times,” she said.

And even though each stop is two minutes, drivers really connect with meals recipients.

“One lady baked me muffins. One lady gave us all Valentine’s cards with $1 scratch tickets in them,” she said.

“… One person is blind and she doesn’t know what I look like, but she can hear me and she asks about my husband and son,” she said. “She knows everything about me — and you’re only with them for two minutes, or if they need help, you can help them … but she knows me. She asks if I know the handsome young man who delivers on Thursdays and I’m like, ‘That’s my husband.’”

Besides meals, drivers also deliver holiday gifts such as flowers for the women on Mother’s Day, treats for the men on Father’s Day and Christmas gift bags for everyone. The program also delivers one hot meal and two frozen meals each Friday.

“If you only have one hot meal a day, that would mean a lot,” Sheppard said.

Becoming a driver is as simple as calling the adult center and asking to speak to Sophia Homan or Eric Gonzales (see infobox). Drivers undergo a background check and provide a copy of their driver’s license; training is also available, Sheppard said — experienced drivers will take new drivers out to show them the routes.

“It’s not scary,” she said. “It’s not, ‘Here’s a map, good luck.’

“It’s an amazing program,” she added. “In terms of things I’ve done in Hood River as far as volunteering, this is one of the most rewarding.”