By Megan Haggan
IN 1970, newlywed and recently arrived British immigrant Dilys Ketley was tiring of being a stay-at-home housewife.
So, when she saw an advertisement asking for volunteers for the new Canberra Meals on Wheels, she was keen to get involved.
Thirty-eight years later, Dilys still delivers Meals on Wheels once a month, and was a guest speaker at a dinner celebrating the service’s fortieth anniversary in Canberra.
“When I started, I joined the Reid branch, which has since folded,” Dilys told “CityNews”.
“I worked in the kitchen and did delivery runs for a while. Then they advertised a staff position working in the kitchen, which I applied for and got.”
Some aspects of Meals on Wheels have changed, she says – for example, meals are no longer delivered hot, but instead arrive cold and can be microwaved.
What hasn’t changed is clients’ appreciation of the service.
“People who are old or disabled often can’t cook, so it’s important that they get at least one proper meal a day.
“They also like the contact with the people who bring the meals – sometimes there’s nobody else to talk to, so quite often you’re the only person they talk to that day.”
According to Red Cross executive director Paul Csoban, this daily contact is plays a role in client safety.
“As some Meals on Wheels volunteers are the only point of daily contact for a client, they can also play a vital role in safeguarding their well being,” he says.
“They are able to notify their service co-ordinator if a client’s health appears to have deteriorated, or seek urgent help if needed.”
Meals on Wheels began in 1952, when an elderly citizens club in South Melbourne began delivering meals using a tricyle. SA began a service in 1953, and Canberra’s first service began in 1968.
At first, Meals on Wheels in the ACT had two clients. By 1969 there were 29, and today there are 650 Canberran clients, 400 volunteers and 130,000 meals delivered each year.
When the service began, meals were purchased from Commonwealth Hostels and storage and cleaning of containers was temporarily carried out at Red Cross House; after this the Senior Citizens Club made their facilities available, and eventually the Canberra Hospital Board took over the provision of all meals.
“I worked in the Turner kitchen, where we used to stand over bain-maries packing meals; then the service moved to the hospital and we packed them along a conveyor belt,” Dilys says.
Today, Meals on Wheels fresh meals are prepared and cooked at Canberra Hospital, and delivered from the offices at Holder. Frozen meals are supplied by BCS Catering, Central West Foods and Flagstaff.
For more information call 6287 4311 or visit http://www.mealsonwheels.org.au.