Who we are:

Metro Meals on Wheels (MMOW) is a collaborative association comprised of 38
community and neighborhood-based Meals on Wheels programs located throughout the Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN metropolitan area. In partnership with these programs, we lead the effort to make sure people in our community receive the nutritious meals and the human connection they need to help them live independently.

Our local Meals on Wheels programs deliver nearly one million meals annually to
approximately 8,000 clients. Each week day nearly 400 volunteers are needed to serve our clients.

What we do:

Metro Meals on Wheels partners with our neighborhood MOW programs to ensure effective volunteer recruitment, marketing, fundraising, advocacy, technical assistance, information/referral, and education/training services to all members. This ensures less duplication of effort on the part of programs, enabling them to be more cost-effective, efficient and skilled.  

Our services are a way for the small, neighborhood programs to operate on a larger scale, since MMOW can cover the entire metropolitan area for volunteers, marketing, fundraising, etc. MMOW also acts as a liaison between the neighborhood programs and other senior-serving agencies, funders, the media, and the general public.  

Our accomplishments:

In 2007 Metro Meals on Wheels:
•    Awarded over $61,000 in grants and scholarships to our members;
•    Recruited hundreds of corporate and individual volunteers to deliver meals throughout the Twin Cities area;
•    Referred approximately 1,500 potential clients to their local Meals on Wheels programs;
•    Coordinated the Blizzard Bag Blitz which resulted in 8,000 emergency meals being prepared and distributed to Meal on Wheels clients, to be used if inclement weather prevents volunteers from delivering meals during the winter months; and
•    Created an interactive map on the MMOW website (www.meals-on-wheels.com), making it easier to find information about neighborhood Meals on Wheels programs.

Our plans for the future:

Metro Meals on Wheels is working with our members and leaders in our community to develop and implement ways to strengthen our collaborative efforts. Though still in the early stages, we anticipate offering more services to members and developing stronger partnerships with community organizations and stakeholders.