Walmart grant to MVES keeps Meals on Wheels going

Grant from Walmart Foundation and Meals On Wheels Association of America Helps Feed Hungry Seniors in Mystic Valley region

    Much-needed grant means a brighter future for local efforts to feed homebound seniors

June 22, 2011, MALDEN, MA – Mystic Valley Elder Services has been awarded $11,394 through a Walmart Foundation grant to the Meals On Wheels Association of America (MOWAA).  The money will provide Mystic Valley Elder Services with much-needed coolers, hot bags, trays, and other food delivery items which are critical to continue serving seniors both at home and at senior meal sites in Everett, Malden, Melrose, Medford, North Reading, Reading, Stoneham, and Wakefield.

This financial support is desperately needed as many Meals On Wheels programs across the country continue to struggle with skyrocketing gasoline costs and rising food prices. The Walmart Foundation-MOWAA “Building the Future” Impact Grants will allow Mystic Valley Elder Services to buy equipment and help ensure sustainability while fostering long-term growth.

“Thanks to the Walmart Foundation-MOWAA Building the Future Impact Grant, we now have a brighter future in our efforts to keep feeding seniors in our community,” said Dan O’Leary, executive director of Mystic Valley Elder Services. “This grant will help us provide the next meal to many of our clients in need and will truly make a difference for the seniors of the eight cities and towns we serve.

The Walmart Foundation recently announced a $5 million donation to MOWAA as part of a $2 billion commitment to support hunger relief efforts through 2015.   Part of that $5 million donation will fund the “Building the Future” Impact Grants.   The grants will help more than 100 local Meals On Wheels programs purchase stoves, refrigerators, trucks and other equipment needed in the fight to end senior hunger. 

The Walmart Foundation first became a partner of Meals On Wheels in 2008.  A donation of $750,000 to MOWAA helped 80 struggling Member programs restore meal services that had been reduced or were facing cuts.  In late 2009, the Foundation donated an additional $2.2 million to MOWAA that helped 147 Member programs expand their meal services with new equipment.

“We know that seniors are among those hardest hit by hunger in this country. Many are home-bound, and rely on neighbors and community volunteer programs like Meals On Wheels to help put food on the table,” said Margaret McKenna, president of the Walmart Foundation. “Through this $5 million grant, we hope to bring additional attention to senior hunger and help ensure our parents, grandparents and friends who have added so much to our lives have access to healthy and nutritious food.”

“The Walmart Foundation continues to step up to the plate in the fight against senior hunger,” said Enid Borden, President and CEO of MOWAA. “They understand that joining Meals On Wheels in this battle is a moral imperative. The Walmart Foundation’s generous support helps ensure our programs sustain meal services well into the future.  We can’t thank the Walmart Foundation enough for being such a powerful partner in our mission to end senior hunger in America by the year 2020.”

Research sponsored by MOWAA reveals that more than six million seniors in America face the threat of hunger.  The Walmart Foundation-MOWAA “Building the Future” Impact Grant program is intended to help combat the problem of senior hunger.

# # #

Mystic Valley Elder Services provides resources, referrals, and critical life-supporting home care assistance to elders, adults with disabilities, and caregivers in Everett, Malden, Medford, Melrose, North Reading, Reading, Stoneham, and Wakefield. For more information, call 781-324-7705 or visit them online at www.mves.org.

About Philanthropy at Walmart 

Walmart and the Walmart Foundation are proud to support the charitable causes that are important to customers and associates in their own neighborhoods. Through its philanthropic programs and partnerships, the Walmart Foundation funds initiatives focused on creating opportunities in education, workforce development, economic opportunity, environmental sustainability, and health and wellness. From February 1, 2008 through January 31, 2009, Walmart – and its domestic and international foundations – gave more than $423 million in cash and in-kind gifts globally. To learn more, visit www.walmartfoundation.org.