Meals on Wheels of Central Maryland

The Names in the Newsletter.

“What life have you if you have not life together? There is no life that is not in community.”  T.S. Eliot

I would like to share with you one thought I have.  It’s about me and my role as Director of this wonderful organization. 

From time to time, I ponder our agency’s mission and its importance, and I worry about our capacity to continue serving every person who needs us, regardless of their ability to pay.  Thankfully we are blessed to have our volunteers as partners.  These folks give willingly of their time, their vehicles and they even donate money to our cause. 

But food and fuel costs remain a challenge, and the adverse economy has affected us as well as many other noble non-profit organizations.   Our agency has a tremendous challenge in raising sufficient funds to meet our mission.  (In case you think otherwise, about one third of all our money comes from government sources.)

Recently I reviewed our most recent newsletter.  Each issue has an extensive list of individuals who have donated to our mission either ‘In Memory of” or ‘In Honor of’ someone who was associated with Meals on Wheels of Central Maryland.  (You can see some of these gifts by clicking the Memorial Donations link on our home page.)  During my tenure I have come to know a good number of these clients and volunteers, and I found comfort and thanks in knowing that they were remembered with a donation to our agency and the good work we perform.

By looking back at several old issues of our newsletter, I came to realize that many of our clients, volunteers and their family members wished to be remembered by a gift to our agency.  The connection that a person feels to Meals on Wheels of Central Maryland and to the importance of our work has always been there, probably since the beginnings of our work.  Our agency’s impact on all the communities of Central Maryland has some very deep routes.  I felt humbled by the depth of people’s connections and by their desire to see our good work continue.  

With so many caring people out there thinking of us and making plans to remember us, I feel as if we cannot fail.  I am inspired by these folks, and although losing a client or volunteer is a sad event, we all find comfort in their remembrance and memorial gifts on their behalf.  I am sure my predecessors in this position felt the same way.  And I am committed to honoring their memory by continuing to serve everyone who needs our service, and to recognizing and supporting the volunteers who make us successful.

Happy Summer Everyone!

Tom