Clark County’s meal delivery organization for senior citizens will bring back its in-person offerings to the area, with its sights set on a north Clark County option after the COVID-19 pandemic halted its operations at the Battle Ground Community Center.
Prior to the pandemic, Meals on Wheels People (MOWP) served weekday meals out of the community center at 912 E. Main St. in Battle Ground. The organization rented out dining space, the kitchen and some office space at the community center, Meals on Wheels People CEO Suzanne Washington said. Alongside the congregate dining, the space served as a hub for homebound deliveries across north Clark County.
Between 35 to 40 people took part in the congregate dining on any given day, Washington said. In March 2020, MOWP halted their in-person offerings.
“When the pandemic hit, that just changed everything,” Washington said.
Homebound delivery grew significantly during the pandemic by about two-thirds, she said. In April about 2,000 meals were delivered in the north county area.
Although MOWP continued operating at the community center for meal delivery, Washington said they eventually moved out of the center after volunteers were hassled about following masking requirements. Though she couldn’t say if there was a specific group involved with the harassment, there was a period of time prior to the release of the COVID-19 vaccines where individuals along Main Street would confront the volunteers who went in and out of the center during delivery operations.
Washington said MOWP brought back in-person dining events in April in Clark County as well as Washington and Multnomah counties in Oregon. In Clark County they have operated at the Luepke Center in Vancouver for a few weeks already, and also in Washougal.
Currently MOWP is negotiating with the city on a return to dining at the community center, Washington said.
“We definitely want to bring back our dining site,” Washington said.
Washington estimated MOWP paid $3,000 a month in rental fees prior to the pandemic for use of the community center. Post-pandemic, those costs will no doubt be higher, she said.
The organization does qualify for the city’s nonprofit organization discount, city communications manager Alisha Smith noted in an email.
Apart from the community center, Washington said MOWP was in conversations with other groups in the area to find a place where they could potentially bring back congregate dining.
While MOWP’s regular lunches aren’t currently hosted at the community center, senior-focused meals have returned to the space on a less-frequent basis. Last month, the Battle Ground Senior Citizens group held their first monthly luncheon at the center, moving the meal from the city’s senior center because they needed more space.
The pandemic generally changed MOWP’s operations overall, Washington said. Though now the organization is delivering more meals, it’s less frequent with more meals per visit.
She said the organization isn’t going back to daily deliveries quite yet, though MOWP volunteers regularly call people it serves to check in.
Meals at the in-person dining events were free though donations were collected. Washington said the average donation was about 75 cents per meal, which she noted did not cover the cost of making and providing the meal.
The organization is always looking for volunteers, especially as congregate dining returns, she said.
