Volunteer Jim Farris helps drive Meals on Wheels

Jim Farris prefers to volunteer with a hands-on approach.

“There’s so many things you can volunteer for ... I can see what I’m doing here,” Farris said. “I don’t want to go to meetings or talk on the phone, so this suits me just fine.”

Farris, of Sedalia, has been helping Meals on Wheels for more than 10 years. While he started volunteering through his church, Sacred Heart, he’s on call to help whenever he’s needed.

Twenty-two churches and organizations deliver meals throughout the year. Some take three-week assignments while other groups take two.

Sacred Heart was in charge of delivering meals the week of Jan. 23.

“It’s very easy for me when you have volunteers that are determined,” said Sara Antibus, Sacred Heart Meals on Wheels chairwoman. “These two (Farris and his wife, Pat) are the backbone of the group. They come early and prepare the bread and the milk.”

Deliveries are broken up into five routes and two people are needed per route. One serves as the driver and the other runs the meals to the client. Around 70 meals are served daily.

The food is prepared by Sedalia Food and Vending and arrives at 10:30 a.m. The volunteers form an assembly line, fill orders and sort the meals by route.

Some pairs are eager to request a particular route.

“It’s like people who have a route become possessive over that route because they start knowing the people. So it’s really neat,” Antibus said. “People are expecting you and they greet you.”

Farris goes with the flow and is comfortable with whatever route he is given.

“They (the Farrises) are willing to do anything you ask of them,” said Shirley Homan, director of Meals on Wheels. “If I run short on a route, I can call him and he will come and run the route for me. I can depend on them.”

The Farrises also assist Homan when she’s ill or on vacation.

“Like last week I got sick with the flu, I called them that morning and they came in and worked for me. I don’t worry about a thing,” she said.

Farris used to be a meat cutter at Cash Saver on the east side of town. When he began delivering meals, he found a lot of the clients were his former customers. He enjoys visiting with them and getting to know them on a first-name basis.

He relies on Homan to assist if he runs into a problem.

“If somebody doesn’t take their lunch, Shirley will follow up until she figures out what’s going on, whether they’re sick or just out for the day — and she knows which ones take off and forget to tell us,” he said.

Homan values the work of each person who volunteers.

“We’re a nonprofit organization. We don’t get any federal or state aid. We’re a member of the United Way. We have fundraisers and we take donations. Other than that, we don’t get any kind of aid from the government,” Homan said.

She said some weeks are hard to fill, such as during the Missouri State Fair.

“We’re on call ... I kind of like that because I’ve worked with almost every church and organization in town,” Farris said.

Farris, who is 73, has noticed a lot of the clients he delivers meals to are much younger than he is. He knows it’s because of their health or their financial situation.

“It sure makes you appreciate where you’re at in life,” he said. “It just reminds you how lucky you are.”