Coady-Ella Watson, Jeanine Gibby and Brit Gibby outside the HACC office on Gaskill Street, Canowindra.
A vital service in our community is calling for volunteers to come forward to help with the deliveries of meals throughout Cabonne.
Meals On Wheels offers frozen meals, to fresh salads and soups, snacks, desserts and other meal options that are nutritionally balanced, to people that are over the age of 65, or 50 years or older for Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander people.
The meals provided are sourced from Bathurst and Wagga Wagga, where they are made with fresh ingredients and seasonal vegetables before being frozen.
Frozen meals are delivered weekly to all other towns including Canowindra, and fortnightly to Eugowra.
All meals are stored, packed and driven over by local volunteers.
Volunteering for two months a year on a Tuesday – eight days in the year – is a very rewarding activity. Starting at 8:30am in the morning and stepping into the Cabonne Council Meals On Wheels van, part of your day will see you delivering meals for Canowindra, Cargo, Cudal Molong, Yeoval and everywhere in between.
For the Tuesday run, It is not a regular scenario where you are required to dedicate two months of your time at once, you may be able to involve yourself in the volunteer work in January and then again in July, as an example. There is flexibility in how much time and the days you can commit to, as the volunteering is done on a roster basis.
Brit and Jeanine Gibby have volunteered for Meals On Wheels for the past few years and the reward of volunteering and connecting with older people in our towns is of most importance to them.
“It is great to get out and about and see the different areas and also see a lot of the towns,” the Gibby’s explain.
“It is nice to have a navigator when the two of us go together and you run into a lot of different people, where you can talk to them, and make a connection with them, and get to know their stories.”
“The volunteer work gets us off the farm and we get to spend time out in the community. Both of our parents have passed away and getting out to meet people who are older and just connect with them is very special.” Jeanine Gibby said.
This is a case of the more hands the lighter the load. Other volunteer positions are available where only an hour a month is required to make a huge difference in the lives of people in Canowindra.
In addition to frozen meals there are also a hot meal runs on weekdays for Canowindra and daily in Eugowra, which are prepared by the hospital kitchens and delivered in town seniors by our volunteers.
If you are interested in finding out more about these volunteer opportunities, please contact the Cabonne Home Support office in Canowindra on 6344 1199.