Climbing food and gas prices challenge Meals on Wheels service for Wichita seniors

When Alva Kite, 92, suffered a stroke and couldn’t move around like he used to, his son signed him up to receive Meals on Wheels.

“And I don’t get around and drive very much. So yeah, they really helped,” Kite said. “I really enjoy them.”

The program through Senior Services of Wichita delivers around 800 hot meals each weekday to senior citizens’ doorsteps in Wichita. It serves a few dozen of the most vulnerable clients on the weekends as well. About 200 volunteers use their own vehicles to transport meals cooked in a professional kitchen.

But the past few months have proved to be challenging. Like many these days, Meals on Wheels is grappling with too many costs and not enough money. That has left the program over $230,000 in the hole. But it is persisting.

Gas prices

Gas prices are averaging $4.58 in Wichita, the highest they’ve been. Executive Director Laurel Alkire said that they haven’t had trouble keeping their dedicated volunteers, but sometimes volunteers have to cut back on how many miles they use for Meals on Wheels.

“We haven’t really had anyone come out and say, ‘I can’t afford to do it,’ but, ‘I’m not going to be able to deliver this week, I’ve got something going on,’” Alkire said.

Volunteer Tom Shockey has been delivering meals for close to eight years. But with the rising gas prices, he and his wife have had to make some adjustments.

“We were considering taking on another day — we do three days a week and we were going to do four — but there ain’t no way we can do that,” he said. “We’re thinking about even going down to two.”

“We need something to do, it’s a good task, but it’s getting expensive real fast,” Shockey said.

Still, volunteers always swarm to help, Alkire said.

“Last Friday (June 3), we had 27 open routes. Which was a lot, but we got some stuff on media and we filled them … I went down at 11 and they said, ‘They’re gone,’” she said.

Social Services Director Sherri Flippo said that during her 40 plus years at Senior Services of Wichita, she has always been impressed with the support Meals on Wheels receives.

“The commitment we have to the program is really incredible,” Flippo said. “When we get the word out that we’re having a really bad day, they show up, they’ll walk in. Despite everything, I just think that’s pretty incredible.”

Need for more funding

The rising price of food has also caused challenges, Alkire said. The total yearly revenue for Meals on Wheels is $1,801,419. The cost of the program? $2,040,169. This puts the program $238,750 in the hole. Inflation is a big part of this money gap.

“As you can imagine, we’re feeding over 800-plus people a day. It’s just so expensive,” she said. It costs about $2,000 to provide meals to a senior for one year.

To solve this problem, Meals on Wheels is asking for extra money. They formally requested $3 million from the state for all of Kansas’ Meals on Wheels programs. They will receive $1.5 million from ARPA funds (COVID relief) this year and plan to go to the state again at the end of the summer. They also went to the Sedgwick County Commission and informally asked for extra dollars, perhaps $200,000.

“Meals on Wheels is very sacred to people. … It’s an easy sell, in a lot of cases,” Alkire said. “You know, people will come forward and if we say, ‘Hey, we’re really struggling, we may have to cut back, we may have to close.’ God forbid that would happen, but the media would help us get that word out and I think people would step up.

“It’s feeding people, it’s a basic need.”

People often ask Meals on Wheels if or how they can donate food. The program cannot accept food donations.

“We’re regulated just like a restaurant would be regulated so we have to use a licensed vendor,” development director Chris Heiman said. “We purchase just like any restaurant would.”

On top of that, the meals have to check off certain boxes.

“We have state and federal guidelines we have to follow for our menu, so so much protein, so much fruit, so much vegetables, so we don’t really have the option to just get whatever we can get,” Alkire said.

The supply chain is another factor in the equation, Alkire said.

“Getting the stuff we need is difficult,” she said.

During Alkire’s thirty-plus years with the organization, she has seen a trend of overlooking senior citizen care.

“Seniors are on nobody’s radar. They’re at the bottom of everyone’s list. But, you know, they got us where we are today and they deserve our attention. I’ve been doing this for 34 years and it still hasn’t changed,” Alkire said.

The pandemic has made it worse, she said.

“During COVID, I would read … people saying, ‘Why are we … treating the old ones? Just let them go, save the money for the young ones.’ And I’m like, that’s awful,” Alkire said.

Heiman said that’s what makes Meals on Wheels even more important.

“[Aging is] a difficult thing for people to grasp, to get their heads around, it’s stressful. And that’s why programs like ours are really important to the community,” Heiman said.

“We hear it from all of our peers in the industry, ‘I didn’t know you existed, I didn’t know you had these services, I didn’t know this building was back here.’ I think it’s just society, doesn’t want to look at growing old,” she said.

How to help

The best way to help Meals on Wheels is to volunteer or give money.

Volunteers can apply on Meals on Wheels’ website. All volunteers have to pass a background check.

To donate to Senior Services of Wichita, visit the “Support Our Cause” tab, https://seniorservicesofwichita.org/make-a-donation/, on the program’s website. There’s also a donation button on the top right corner of every page on the website.

To be considered to receive meals on wheels, call 267-0122. Residents 60 years or older who are homebound and unable to cook for themselves are eligible for the services.