Cowra's Meals on Wheel's volunteers deliver "more than just a meal" the service's director Denise Makin told volunteers at a function held at Cowra's Japanese Garden Cafe last week to thank them.
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"Meals on Wheels believes in food security for everyone," Ms Makin told some of the service's 278 volunteers who attended the function."
Remarkably over the past 12 months, 678 clients received 57,107 meals from volunteers in Cowra.
"You deliver so much more than just a meal," Ms Makin told the volunteers.
Speaking on the service and its volunteer base Ms Makin described the Cowra Grenfell Meals on Wheels as "an innovative not for profit organisation that enables people to live in their own homes with dignity".
"We nourish, care and work in partnerships to strengthen our communities by providing a range of high quality nutritious affordable food options, assisting people to stay connected and nourished in mind, body and soul.
"The service is much more than a meal which all you volunteers would know, providing excellent meal options, daily interaction, daily monitoring or well-being, activities, rewarding volunteers which sustains and strengthens our local community.
"It is you beautiful people who are our workforce, that deliver the meals and also the smiles, the well-being checks, and doing odd jobs that you are often asked to do.
"I know it has been a hectic time through COVID, through floods, a shortage of volunteers but you are always just so helpful and amazing.
"I can't thank you enough from myself, my team, the board, the clients and the community.
"Volunteers build strong healthy communities, that's what you do," she said.
On behalf of the Cowra Meals on Wheels Board, chairman Jan Nielsen thanked the volunteers "you're all wonderful".
She also praised the staff of the service who "every day fill every volunteer spot for every run in Cowra and Grenfell".
"They can because so many of you, with one minute's notice, say 'yes, I can do an extra run', it's amazing, so thank you so much," Ms Nielsen said to the volunteers.
Cowra deputy mayor Paul Smith also spoke at the function saying "Cowra is a very very good place to live, one of the reasons it is, is because of you people, the people who give and volunteer to help their own".
"This is what living in a small community is about, people like you who put in, don't put their hand out for anything, they just do it because they want to.
"I take my hat off to all of you," Cr Smith said.
Meals on Wheels Australia this year is celebrating 70 years.
The Cowra Service has been delivering meals for 64 years.