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In this episode of Lehigh Valley with Love, we talk with Dina Kovats-Bernat, Director of Development and Communications for Meals on Wheels of the Greater Lehigh Valley, about what happens when politics stall and how delayed budgets are putting real lives at risk.
Meals on Wheels of the Greater Lehigh Valley serves homebound adults of all ages across Lehigh, Northampton, and Carbon counties. Volunteers deliver meals, groceries, and pet food while also performing daily wellness checks to make sure clients are safe and cared for.
The organization is now facing one of its toughest challenges. Pennsylvania’s state budget has been delayed for months, and counties have frozen payments to agencies like Meals on Wheels. Despite this, MOWGLV continues to serve hundreds of residents who depend on them every single day.
“About 75 percent of our clients are county funded,” Dina says. “When the counties can’t pay, we still deliver, but we don’t know if we will be reimbursed.”
Hunger across the region has grown since the pandemic. Dina notes that for many of their clients, it is not just food insecurity, it is complete lack of food.
“Some of our clients have nothing in the refrigerator, nothing in the cabinets. We bring a hot and cold meal every day, and that is what they rely on.”
Meals on Wheels currently has 900 active volunteers who deliver food, provide safety checks, and sometimes even save lives by noticing when something is wrong. Volunteers have found clients who needed medical help and contacted emergency services in time.
To continue this work, MOWGLV will host its Bountiful Bowl fundraiser on November 8 at Be Social in Bethlehem. The event raises funds to cover meal costs for those who cannot pay.
“These are people who built our communities,” Dina says. “They deserve kindness, respect, and food. Those are basic human needs.”
Learn more or get involved at www.mowglv.org.
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