(From left) Meals on Wheels Yolo County employees John Hsu and Jerry Alarcón prepare meals to be delivered to the county’s seniors Thursday, Nov. 2, 2023, in Winters. (Gerardo Zabala/Daily Democrat)
In November 2023, Meals on Wheels Yolo County will celebrate the opening of the new 5,300 square foot Winters Senior Nutrition Center, which, when combined with the existing Woodland-based kitchen, will expand the nonprofit’s meal production capabilities. This will double the number of meals served each day from 800 to 1,700.
So far, the nonprofit is working slowly toward reaching that goal, but currently feeds about 1,000 Yolo County seniors each day, said Joy Cohan, executive director of the nonprofit. he said.
“Although there was growth, growth slowed as we awaited final operating permits from the Winters facility,” Cohan explained. “All of our growth to date has continued to rely on Woodland’s kitchen. Plumbing and electrical issues in the Winters building caused several months of delays. But we are finally able to start producing meals at Winters. Now that we have started, we can resume our planned expansion.”
The nonprofit is 40% of the way toward meeting its goal of meeting at least one-third of the county’s total needs by 2026.
“According to the 2020 Census, approximately 20% of all seniors in Yolo County are food insecure, as confirmed by the recent Yolo Food Bank Food Insecurity Survey,” Cohan said. “This means he has more than 8,000 local seniors who are likely to benefit from Meals on Wheel Yolo meal access.”
Additionally, the nutrition center’s location will allow the nonprofit to expand its services to the Capay Valley as early as next month. Cohan encourages seniors and those caring for seniors along Highway 16 to contact the nonprofit at welcome@mowyolo.org or her 530-662-7035 for more information.
The project was made possible primarily through a planned investment of $100,000 from Sutter Health to support the operation of the new meal production kitchen and approximately $500,000 in state funds secured by Assemblymember Cecilia Aguiar-Curry.
“Sutter Health’s investment in this meal production facility gives Meals on We’ll Yolo an opportunity for the private and corporate philanthropy community to help our organization leverage one-time public funding from Yolo County. It has given us confidence that we will go even further to maintain the leap of faith we have taken.” The Aging 4 Agency and the State of California are proud to announce that “Meals on Wheels.” “We will lease a facility and provide equipment, which we will call the Sutter Health Senior Nutrition Center,” Kohan emphasized.
She said this collaboration was “just the beginning” of her vision for a strong partnership to ensure food security for the elderly in the future. Additionally, Cohan said Sutter Health continues to sponsor the nonprofit’s Thanksgiving holiday meals for seniors as part of a “meaningful new tradition.”
Kelly Brenk, director of community health at Sutter Health, asserted during a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Nov. 2, 2023, that the launch of the nutrition center is “more than just food.”
“This space will help keep local ingredients fresh longer and enable recipes tailored to meet the diverse dietary needs of Yolo County’s most vulnerable neighborhoods,” Brenk said. emphasized. “Proper nutrition can help lead to more sustainable and positive health outcomes in the long term.”
Speaking about the funding secured by Aguiar Curry, Cohan said the nearly $500,000 funding so far has helped the nonprofit fund “physical investments in expanding capacity and funding for staff, volunteers, technology and other needs.” “combining corresponding investments in resources and infrastructure.” Maximize the benefits the Nutrition Center provides both the nonprofit and Yolo County.
“We are mindful of how these funds will serve as the foundation for further capacity expansion in Winters and elsewhere in the county as Meals on We’ll Yolo continues to pursue its strategic impact goals.” It continues to be spent,” Cohan said.
Aguiar-Curry left a recorded message detailing how she was able to secure state funding for the nonprofit, which was played during the ceremony.
“Meals on Wheels For too long, Yolo County has taken on the heavy lifting of providing food security to seniors from inadequate facilities,” she argued in the recording. “In the summer of 2022, when we see the extraordinary work this team is doing in a cramped 40-year-old kitchen, we wish we had more space to prepare as many meals as possible. We found that we could serve three times as many dishes as our seniors. ”
She noted that California has the highest elderly population in the nation and secured $487,848 in what she called “transformational funding” to secure the expansion.
“As the cost of living continues to rise, the need to eat in your car will only increase,” Aguiar Curry emphasized. “I recently celebrated my birthday and turned 69 years old.As an older person myself, I am fully aware of the unique needs of an aging population and will continue to support the rights and care of older people. I’m going.”
Looking to the future, Cohan is excited for her nonprofit to become an even more integral part of the Winters community, establishing an ongoing Meals on Wheel Yolo operation in town.
“We are expanding the reach of our program throughout the Winters region, bringing back Café Yolo group meals to the community in the near future, partnering with the business community, increasing volunteer efforts, and honoring the development of Winters residents. “We’re looking forward to ‘Eat Well, Age Well’ from our robust facility in the heart of town,” she said.
For more information about dining in Yolo County, visit mowyolo.org.
