State Rep Flanagan Joins Meals On Wheels Delivery

BREWSTER – On Monday, First Barnstable District State Representative Chris Flanagan joined volunteers at the council on aging delivering meals to local seniors as part of Meals on Wheels.

Meals on Wheels is one of the leading programs providing nutritional meals to the elderly population on Cape Cod and the islands.

This is Flanagan’s second year attending a Meals on Wheels delivery caravan. Last year, he joined the Yarmouth meal site. 

“Given our demographics, we want to make sure people are fed, particularly seniors and our more vulnerable population,” he said. “And it’s just really nice to have face time with people and hear what’s on their mind. People are not shy, and I love that about them.” 

Fourth Barnstable District Representative Hadley Luddy will be joining the Harwich senior meal site today to visit seniors who are currently using the Meals on Wheels program.

While federal and state funding remain uncertain, Elder Services CEO Maryanne Ryan said Meals on Wheels will continue to be a stable solution for seniors in the area. Not only does it provide food, it allows volunteers to check in with recipients and report back on their health, said Ryan. If issues arise, care managers will be notified through the Home Care Program, which helps to fund the Senior Nutrition Program which covers meals for older adults who are determined to be clinically in need to meet their nutritional requirements. 

“We already know that this source of funding is likely to run dry before the end of the fiscal year, thus jeopardizing another essential service designed to let us age in our homes for as long as possible,” said Laura Roskos, the development and public information officer at Elder Services. 

At this point, it’s too early to determine whether budgets will lack the funding to support programs like this, but Ryan said the preliminary budget for the next fiscal year is not looking robust enough. 

“We are in a budget environment where — and we saw this with the governor’s budget — they’re reviewing everything,” said Flanagan. “The House will be reacting to the governor’s budget [in April].”