More than 10,000 older and disabled Mainers rely on the federally funded Meals on Wheels program for regular sustenance and for company a couple of times a week.
Many live in rural areas, below the poverty line, and are homebound. But at a time when demand for the service is growing, its funding has become the target of federal cuts.
Volunteers Bev and Phil LeClair maneuvered their car down a quiet lane in Alfred during their Tuesday route. They arrived at a little brick house to find 95-year-old Robert Vivian waiting for them on the porch.
"I haven't seen you in a while," Phil said.
"Thanks for coming," Robert said.
Phil placed pre-made meals to last seven days, along with milk, a fruit cup, butter and bread on a small wooden table on the porch. Bev set a bouquet of flowers down next to the groceries.
"I love senior citizens. I think they deserve the respect and the love," Bev said.
Bev and Phil said that they have been volunteering for just over a year and are worried about the federal budget cuts proposed to senior nutrition programs.
"It's such a godsend for those who are so appreciative of getting it," Phil said.
The Southern Maine Agency on Aging operates Meals on Wheels in York and Cumberland Counties. It reports that more than 145,000 dinners have been provided to residents so far this year. That's on pace to pass the nearly 240,000 meals delivered last year.
Agency CEO Megan Walton said that statewide there are more than 700 seniors on the Meals on Wheels waiting list, some waiting weeks or even a year to get into the program.
But the $6 million to $7 million in federal funding that supports the program through the Older Americans Act has been placed on the chopping block, along with SNAP and other programs that help seniors.
"All of these systems are under strain or under attack, and that just makes it harder for people when they're making really tough decisions. Do I pay for food? Do I pay for heating? Do I pay for utilities? Do I pay for prescription drugs? This is the climate that a lot of our clients are in right now," Walton said.
Each meal costs about $8 to make, package, and deliver, as drivers can be reimbursed for mileage. A $3.50 donation from clients is suggested but never expected, as so many are barely getting by.
Nutrition Team Lead Elizabeth Varga ensures that dietary restrictions are followed.
"We have a lot of options for dietary needs. Low sodium, diabetic, heart friendly," Varga said.
Varga said each client is reassessed every six months for meals. They are also connected with other services that can help them stay in their homes.
Meals on Wheels also depends on volunteers like Bev and Phil LeClair who are on the front lines of the program. The couple said they will be adding routes to their schedule soon because there currently are not enough volunteers to deliver meals.
Patricia Guertin, 75, is the primary caregiver for her 81-year-old husband Carroll, who has Lewy Body Dementia and Parkinson's. She said it's an around the clock job. So, she's glad to see the LeClair's stop by with the week's meals.
"They make a big difference because he eats at all times of the day and night. So, it's very convenient to give him one," Guertin said.
The LeClair's reach Ellston Smith's house late that morning. He's the final client of the day on the LeClair's rounds, a self-proclaimed "Maineac" who said he's 93 and a half.
"These people are great to me, they are," Smith said.
In the face of federal cuts, state lawmakers are considering a measure that would funnel more than $9.7 million annually into Meals on Wheels and other Agency on Aging community supports for older Mainers.
It's currently on the special appropriations table, waiting to be funded.
