Walmart Foundation Provides Major Grant to Meals on Wheels of Lehigh County
Meals on Wheels of Lehigh County has been awarded a $15,000 impact grant through a Walmart Foundation grant to the Meals on Wheels Association of America.
This grant will be used towards new workstations designed to increase workplace efficiency and effectiveness without taking funds away from providing meals. “This generous grant from the Walmart Foundation will help to ensure that we are able to continue providing a high-quality service to the more than 400 Lehigh County homebound residents who need home-delivered meals every weekday.” said Pam Bechtel, Executive Director of Meals On Wheels of Lehigh County.
The Walmart Foundation’s financial support is desperately needed as many Meals On Wheels programs across the country are struggling to survive during this economic downturn. This “Walmart Foundation Impact Grant” is intended to help us to continue to reach out to the growing number of our homebound neighbors throughout Lehigh County in need of home-delivered meals. The Walmart Foundation is providing more than $2 million nationwide to make sure Meals On Wheels programs have the equipment they need to maintain their operations into the future.
Meals on Wheels of Lehigh County extends sincere gratitude to the Meals On Wheels Association of America and Walmart Foundation for their outstanding concern and support of Meals On Wheels organizations throughout the country and our efforts to end Senior Hunger by 2020.
On January 29th Meals on Wheels of Lehigh County Received its Largest Major Gift from an Individual Donor and Elects New Officers and Board Members
At its Annual Board Meeting, Meals on Wheels of Lehigh County accepted the largest major gift it has ever received from an individual donor. Mae Hostetter and her husband Dale presented the Agency with an $80,000 donation to be paid over ten years.
Mae Hostetter of Fogelsville worked for Meals on Wheels for eight and a half years. She wanted to donate back to the Agency all the money she earned while working. Mae said: “I am returning the money I earned to be recycled in to an excellent program that helps provide homebound clients with nutritious meals and outside contact each day.” She further stated that “I hope that this gift will encourage others to give to this wonderful program.”
Pamela S. Bechtel, Executive Director accepted the gift on behalf of the senior citizens and individuals with disabilities that the Agency serves. She stated: “This gift is momentous in the life and history of Meals on Wheels of Lehigh County. Mae has given so much of herself as both a staffer and volunteer, and now she is giving again through this financial gift. This donation will allow us to feed three low-income clients for ten years—14,545 meals in total!”
Prior to accepting this gift, the Board held a business meeting and elected new members and officers.
New Board members are: Shelia Berg, retired Social Worker; Philip J.
Del Vecchio, Jr., retired Physician; and John D. Zwetoliz, VP/Regional Manager at Team Capital Bank. Board members who retired are: Patricia Blahnik, Sam Criswell, Dave Coleman, Cathy Shankweiler, Jan Sipple and Christopher Williams
New officers for the 2010 term are: Wally Myers, owner of Celebrity Cleaning, Inc., President; John Haney, Chief Operating Officer at St. Luke’s Physician Group, First Vice-President; James Faylor, CPA, Lang, Faylor & Chomo, Treasurer; and Carol Closson, Community Volunteer, Secretary