More than 20 local government leaders will help deliver food to the elderly, ill, or disabled as part of Meals on Wheels nationwide "Mayors for Meals Day." On Wednesday, they'll go on routes in their communities to deliver food to people who, in many cases, rely on the program for their sole source of nutrition.
"What this does is raise awareness of the growing population of senior citizens in Allegheny County," said Coraopolis Mayor Anthony Celeste, "a lot of them don't have the means, and these folks at Meals on Wheels are the only contacts for some senior citizens."
The Meals on Wheels Association of America estimates that 7.5 million seniors in the U.S. face the threat of hunger. Even more, as Celeste pointed out, sometimes volunteers delivering food are the only source of outside contact for the people receiving meals, so he said it's important to check in and make sure living conditions are acceptable.
Mayors from communities including Crafton, McKeesport, Bridgeville, and Carnegie will be out delivering meals on Wednesday. White Oak Borough Mayor Ina Jean Marton has been participating in Mayors for Meals since 2004.
"Just to let them know we're here, we're concerned about them, and we want to help them out as best we can," she said.