​Suzanne has been volunteering with Chinese Meals on Wheels since mid-March. She had just moved back to Richmond (after working as an accountant in Bermuda for several years) when the COVID-19 pandemic broke out. “I had come home for a bit of a break and was contemplating a possible career change,” says Suzanne. “I realized that this was the perfect opportunity to start volunteering – I have the time, I’m healthy, I have a car and I speak Cantonese.”

Suzanne enjoys interacting with the clients – she knows that in some cases she may be the only visitor a client sees in person that day, so she always asks how they are doing to make sure they are okay. She also enjoys interacting with the other volunteers who help make deliveries. “It feels like a real community,” she says. Without help from volunteers like Suzanne, we would not be able to reach as many clients as we do – thank you for your support!

​Elaine and Sheldon have delivered Meals on Wheels by bicycle for just under a year. They have always enjoyed cycling and giving back to the community. “One day while we were on a ride, we saw a MOW volunteer cycle by. We realized that this was the perfect volunteer opportunity for us,” says Elaine. “It’s great motivation for us to get out of the house, and we always enjoy seeing the clients.”

Sheldon points out that “there’s a whole segment of society that’s easy to miss – people who are homebound, and possibly lonely, in basement suites and apartments across the city.” Overtime, they have visited the same regular clients on their weekly route. “I think the clients enjoy our brief visits even more as we’ve gotten to know each other.”

Elaine is quick to point out that “we don’t volunteer for the accolades – we volunteer because it’s good for us, and it’s good for the community!”

We thank Elaine and Sheldon for the dedication and continued support during the COVID-19 pandemic. We also thank them for referring a friend, Susan, who began volunteering this April, also on her bike.
Susan is a retired physiotherapist. She mentioned that “for the last 10 years or so of my career, I provided physiotherapy to clients in their homes. Delivering MOW directly to clients feels very familiar to me.”
She added that her first route was “Lovely! I had an easy route to navigate on my bike and everyone was very happy to see me and receive their meal.” Thanks Susan for becoming part of our volunteer team!

​Garth and Susie are new Meals on Wheels (MOW) volunteers who started helping in mid-March near the beginning of the COVID-19 outbreak – they saw a news item about our need for volunteers. Garth, a retired HandyDart driver, had previously volunteered with MOW in Powell River. He knew how important the service is for homebound seniors or people with mobility issues.

Garth and Susie travel regularly. Susie, a retired high school teacher, has taught in England, Italy, Tanzania, as well as North Vancouver and Powell River. “Volunteering on a regular basis isn’t always possible when we travel,” says Susie. However, the recent travel restrictions and their desire to stay close to home has given them more free time.

“We decided to reach out and lend a helping hand by delivering Meals on Wheels in the West End, our own neighbourhood. It also helps that we have a parking pass,” Garth noted, “because parking can be a challenge at times.”
Susie delivers directly to clients while Garth stays in the car. She knows that some clients are lonely; they look forward to the brief chat and informal safety check they get with each delivery. Thanks Garth & Susie!

Last holiday season, we spoke with Jim and Gaye  - 2 Meals on Wheels (MOW) volunteers about their experiences.

We couldn’t reach as many MOW clients as we do without the help of our large volunteer team - almost 400 volunteers! Although the majority of our volunteers make deliveries with their own cars, many of our volunteers make use of car-sharing. (And some other volunteers deliver by bike). 

Using Care BC’s MODO account makes it easy for even more people to volunteer their time. In some cases, using a MODO vehicle provides more room for longer routes. The MODO cars have also been used when a volunteer’s regular vehicle is being repaired or maintained.

There are special times of the year when our volunteers have more to deliver – for more than 40 years, the Garden Club of Vancouver has supplied beautiful floral arrangements which we share with our clients. On these special days, having access to a larger MODO car ensures our volunteers can still carry on with their routes without having to worry about cargo space in their own vehicles.

Last December, we chatted with two volunteers who use MODO vehicles on the day the Garden Club floral arrangements were delivered. We met Jim at the MAVA kitchens (where our Western Meals are produced); Jim is a courier – meaning he brings batches of meals to depots across the city. “My personal car is a two-seater,” says Jim. “I wouldn’t be able to deliver meals and floral arrangements without using a larger car from MODO. I’m glad I can still help out as a courier on special days like today.”

We next met with our delivery volunteer, Gaye, in the South Granville area. Delivery volunteers pick up meals from the couriers at our depots and bring the meals directly to our clients. “I don’t have a car”, says Gaye, “but I can still make a difference with a MODO vehicle. I enjoy volunteering and giving back to the community all year, particularly when I can help spread a little holiday cheer.

We thank the Garden Club for their decades-long support, and for making the holidays more cheerful for our Meals on Wheels client. We also thank all our dedicated volunteers for their ongoing support! If you have thought about volunteering with Meals on Wheels, but were concerned about a lack of a personal vehicle, consider lending a hand with our MODO account! 

Meals on Wheels, operated by the Health and Home Care Society of BC (also known as “Care BC”), has served the community since 1967. We deliver to homebound seniors at risk of isolation across Vancouver and Richmond every weekday. In 1996, we launched a Chinese Meals on Wheels service to meet the changing needs of the area. Last year, our Western and Chinese Meals on Wheels programs combined delivered more than 126,000 meals!

We recently chatted with Rebecca, a volunteer with our Chinese Meals on Wheels program, about her experiences supporting the program. Rebecca makes time to volunteer, even though she is still working. The video includes captions in English. Thanks for your help Rebecca!

​Randy Scharf has been a Meals on Wheels (MOW) meal courier volunteer for 9 years – he was recently selected as one of the top prize winners of Kal Tire's "Road Heroes" contest. Congratulations Randy, and thank you for your years of service!

Randy has always been quick to lend a helping hand. For many years he would assist the older residents in his own apartment building, running errands for his neighbours when needed. After volunteering for the Vancouver 2010 Olympics, he decided to continue with a more regular role. He found out about the MOW opportunity through Volunteer Richmond. Randy said “I had the spare time, and I’ve always felt it’s better to be busy than idle.”

In his role as a courier, Randy transports large batches of meals from the kitchen in Richmond to depots around the city 3 times a week, usually in Vancouver’s downtown Eastside near Oppenheimer Park or Strathcona. Delivery volunteers then pick up the meals to deliver directly to the clients. 

Randy grew up in Richmond and knows the city very well. When he was working, some of Randy’s responsibilities involved delivering month-end statements to clients around Vancouver. He’s become even more familiar with the city in his time as a volunteer. When asked if much has changed during his near-decade of volunteering, Randy says “in some places, the traffic has gotten worse. And there are entirely new neighbourhoods and streets in Richmond as the city continues to develop.”

Helping out the community has been a tradition in his family – even though Randy only learned about some of this history very recently. “Hunger and access to food has always been a concern for me,” Randy said. He remembers, even as a child, that the thought of people going hungry made him uneasy. “I was chatting with my Mom and she mentioned that my grandmother was also very concerned about the well-being of her neighbours. She would bring food to those in her community if she was aware that someone was in need.” Randy said he wasn’t surprised to learn this about his grandmother. “I’m glad I can continue a family tradition – even though I didn’t know about it for a long time!”

Randy admits that there are times when he’s less enthusiastic – like when there’s heavy rain or inclement weather – but overall his experience is overwhelmingly positive and rewarding. Now that he is retired, he looks forward to volunteering because it motivates him to get up and feel productive about his day. “When I was working afternoon shifts, I tended to stay up late after work and then sleep in the next morning. It was easy to slip in to a routine where you’re less connected to the community – outside of the people who worked the same schedule.”

Randy has been pleasantly surprised about the community he has experienced, even in Vancouver’s most vulnerable neighbourhoods. “It’s true that there are places where people have many problems, and it can be distressing to see. But we shouldn’t forget that there is a very close-knit community of people living there, like all of us, just trying to get by.”

Speaking of inclement weather - Randy mentioned that his new tires from Kal Tire will help him feel more confident during winter conditions – he joked that “Richmond is already quite flat so you’re usually okay if you leave lots of room between you and the driver ahead during snow.” But thanks to Kal Tire’s Road Heroes contest, Randy will feel even more comfortable on his regular routes throughout the year. Thanks Kal Tire, and thanks again Randy for your years of support! Read more about Randy and the other contest winner volunteers who are making their communities better across the country on their website.

Stanley is a professional accountant - he immigrated to Canada decades ago. Despite his very busy work schedule, Stanley devotes one day a week of his personal time to serve the community. He has been a volunteer with Care BC's Chinese Meals on Wheels program for 12 years.

Stanley recalls that he first heard about the Care BC’s Meals on Wheels volunteer opportunity when he read about the desperate need for volunteer drivers in the newspapers. Although he had spent time volunteering while in school, he realized he hadn't volunteered since graduating. "I thought this might be the perfect opportunity to start volunteering again". Though his volunteering, Stanley feels that he is giving back to and connecting with his community.

Not only has Stanley given his own time delivering meals to homebound seniors across Vancouver and Richmond - he has also helped recruit more volunteers to support the program. In his role as an accountant, many of his clients are new retirees - with more free time on their hands, Stanley believes volunteering is a great way for them to stay connected to their community. Whenever possible, Stanley encourages these clients to consider joining the Care BC volunteer team - many of them have become regular volunteers. 

We thank Stanley for his dedication to the Chinese Meals on Wheels program and for helping expand our team of volunteers. Last year we served more than 126,700 meals to seniors at risk of isolation across Vancouver & Richmond through our Western and Chinese Meals on Wheels programs. More than half (53%) of our MOW clients are aged 80 or older. 61% of our MOW clients report living alone. None of this would be possible without the support of our volunteers.

If you have a flexible work schedule and can spare a few hours on a weekday, we hope you'll consider volunteering with Meals on Wheels like Stanley! 

Many of our Meals on Wheels (MOW) volunteers are retired – the opportunity allows them to stay active and give back to the community, for just a few hours per shift (deliveries are scheduled between 10:30am and 1pm). But there are an increasing number of new volunteers who work outside of ‘office hours’ or part-time who are also helping out.

Lindsay and Geneviève (pictured, left and right respectively), who both work at the Fairmont Pacific Rim Hotel, are MOW volunteers helping out in the Cedar Cottage area every Friday. They both work evenings and nights; volunteering in the late morning/early afternoon suits their schedule perfectly. “When you work nights, sometimes you feel that you’ve sat around the house all morning”, says Lindsay. She describes their commitment as “only a couple hours a week” (we’re very grateful for the help!), but it’s a very meaningful experience for them both.

Lindsay first brought up the idea of volunteering to Geneviève, who was aware of the service because her grandmother had helped the program that serves Montreal. They both thought it would be the perfect New Year’s resolution to give back to the community. Although Geneviève sold her car once she moved to Gastown, Lindsay picks her up in her car each shift. “I pick up the coffee for us both each shift,” says Geneviève, “I like that we get to catch up during our route – we see each other at work, but don’t always have time for a proper visit.”

When they first started volunteering, about a year and a half ago, they helped out in a few different areas. Eventually a regular route became available in the Cedar Cottage neighbourhood, where Lindsay used to live. “We were so happy when we got a regular route,” she said, “because we get to see many of the same clients each time we deliver”. Geneviève recalls having a good laugh with a client when he answered the door wearing a joke T-shirt picturing a bear chasing a cyclist which read ‘Meals on Wheels’. 

Lindsay and Geneviève both recognize the importance of the informal safety check on each client they provide with their deliveries. Lindsay mentioned that her own grandfather once injured himself and no one from the family was able to visit him in person for 3 days (as he lives out of town). With a little added support from Meals on Wheels, many clients feel they can live independently in their own homes for longer.

One their regular clients recently moved into an assisted living facility (and no longer required Meals on Wheels) – “We were sad when we heard that Ana would be discontinuing her deliveries. We’ll miss our brief visits, but we’re happy to know that she’s in a facility that can provide her the additional care she needs.”
We’re very grateful for the support we receive from Lindsay and Geneviève each week – thanks for your support and commitment!
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If you have ever considered volunteering (either individually or with a friend), we hope you’ll reach out. Learn more about our volunteering opportunities at www.carebc.ca/volunteering.html.

At a young age, Chloe does not know what her plans are in the future, but she is already giving back to the community. Chloe volunteers alongside of her mother, who volunteers with Meals on Wheels. With the same passion for helping people, they decided to make deliveries together to those in need. Chloe realizes how appreciative each clients are when they receive their meals; even with a language barrier, Chloe understands the clients are expressing gratitude towards her and the volunteer team. 

Chloe finds it hard to describe the feeling you get from the volunteering - it’s hard to put in to words. She hopes that others will join the volunteer team and experience for themselves the value of giving back to the community.

​As a requirement to graduate high school, students looking for volunteer hours should consider delivering meals to those around them. Not only will you collect required hours, but it may be a starting point to build your resume and reference list.  

Giving back to the generation that provided so much for him was one of many reasons why Owen chose to volunteer with Meals on Wheels. Regretting the limited time he spent with his grandparents before they passed, Owen now dedicates his time to serve others in the community. Knowing that he may be visiting someone else’s grandparent, he tries to leave a smile on their face. 

\Serving to the seniors in the community gives Owen a chance to connect and ensure the safety of the clients in their own home. His favourite part of the day is having conversations with the seniors, though he keeps his conversations short because there are other seniors waiting to receive their meals. Having more volunteers to help deliver meals alleviates the time constraint and the need to quickly move onto the next delivery. This will give volunteers more time to converse and to check on the safety of the clients. 

​Volunteering during Christmas and summer break, Owen has developed skills that he can be applied to his daily life, school and work. He has gained intergenerational communication skills and time management skills he uses each shift. Owen hopes to continue volunteering with Meals on Wheels and encourages others to as well.