With the current COVID-19 restrictions across Sydney stretching into their eighth week, with no end in sight, Meals on Wheels is not just providing nutritious meals to the elderly but a welcome break from the isolation of lockdown.
As well as filling stomachs, Meals on Wheels organisations are providing much-needed human contact with lonely clients, many of whom are becoming more and more socially isolated.
A Meals on Wheels spokeswoman said the organisation had continued to operate throughout COVID, with strict isolation and quarantine measures in place.
"Our team of 14,000 volunteers and 147 local Meals on Wheels organisations covering all Local Government Areas around the state are meeting demands and widening their doors to those requiring meals," she said.
Local Meals on Wheels operators include Sutherland Food Services, which services Sutherland Shire, and St George Meals on Wheels.
There are also Meals on Wheels services in Liverpool, Fairfield, Camden and Campbelltown.
Meals on Wheels NSW chief executive Les MacDonald said many branches had their own production kitchens, or access to meals via external suppliers.
"This model enables us to continue to deliver, even during times of uncertainty, as we have stringent continuity plans in place should a specific Meals on Wheels provider be impacted by events such as pandemics, bushfires and floods," he said.
"We have the capacity to meet an increase in demand."
Sutherland Food Services service manager Sue Green said they had faced unprecedented demand for their service since the start of the COVID pandemic last year.
"Our customer base has tripled because of COVID," she said.
"We provide 70,000 meals a year, covering everywhere from Kurnell right up to Heathcote.
"We were doing 40,000 to 45,000 pre-COVID.
"We have got 600 active customers. We had a customer base of around 200 before."
Ms Green said a combination of factors had caused the increase in demand, including the inability of family members to visit and provide meals, and the cancellation of social groups.
She said many of their clients were frightened. But perhaps more heartbreaking, was the loneliness many experienced as restrictions dragged on.
"It's really so sad," Ms Green said.
"Our volunteers who are delivering the meals are following all the protocols. They are standing at the gate, but they are finding the clients are wanting to engage with them.
"Even when they ring up to put their orders in they are wanting to talk to the girls on the phone."
While some organisations might not allow staff and volunteers to spend the time just talking to clients, Ms Green said they had no choice.
"We have to," she said. "It's the most significant part of what we do as a local community service organisation."
