The future of the Meals on Wheels Program operated by the Ashland County Aging Unit is in jeopardy.
It’s longtime vendor for the senior meals program, Chartwells at Northland College, has sent the aging unit a notice that it likely won’t able to continue the service after July 15. This comes as Chartwells is in contract negotiations with Northland as the college proceeds with budget cuts.
“I’m not sure if they will come to an agreement, nor do I know if they will be able to be a reliable supplier because of the recent status of the college,” said Laura Nagro, director of the Ashland County Aging Unit.
To help alleviate the situation, the unit has launched an online fundraising webpage.
State statute requires each county to provide seniors meals. Over the years, the Aging Unit has been able to expand the number of people they’ve been able to feed. That could change depending on whether Nagro can find another entity to make and package all the meals for local seniors that depend on the Aging Unit.
Last year, the program provided 30,113 meals to over 400 individuals at a cost of about $14,000 each month, Nagro said.
“That’s just the food cost, it doesn’t include all the staff and volunteer costs, and time to deliver the food,” she added.
It’s not easy to replace that in a matter of days or months, Nagro said. The aging unit has approached local schools, Tamarack Health and another college, but officials have not been able to find a vendor that is willing and able to cover the amount of meals the program provides in a year.
Due to the situation, the unit has had to reduce its meal service at the main site, leaving the most vulnerable seniors in the county in an unreliable situation, Nagro said.
If the unit has to replace its vendor by the June 15 cutoff date, it will come at a drastically higher cost to the program, she said.
“Our budget will not be able to handle it,” Nagro said. “We will have to reduce service at best. We may have to implement a waiting list. This is something our program has never had to use because we have been able to, until now, find a way to stretch our service.”
If Chartwells and Northland agree on a contract, it could reduce the unit’s costs, but it would give the unit more time to find and negotiate backup sites and vendors, Nagro said.
“The program’s costs would increase, but hopefully it won’t be drastic,” she said, “We will have to do this either way because I do not feel the current entities will be there long term.”
Northland College President Chad Dayton the college is in the final stages of its negotiations with Chartwells and hopes to have secured a contract by the end of this week.
“Northland is honored to help support Ashland and Bayfield Counties’ Meals on Wheels programs and host Ashland County Aging Unit diners in our cafeteria three days a week,” said President Chad Dayton. “While these are actually separate contracts between Chartwells and each County, Northland remains committed to the continuation of these important programs in our communities.”
So far, the unit’s GoFundMe page has collected roughly $1,600 towards its $50,000 goal.
“Thank you so much to everyone who has contributed to our fundraiser. Your generosity is making a significant difference,” the unit said on its Facebook page. “With your continued support, we can ensure that our seniors receive the meals they need and avoid any disruption in service. Thank you for being a part of our community and for supporting our seniors.”
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