ISU Nutrition Club members are helping make winter days a little warmer for elderly Ames residents.

Members of the club help distribute meals through the Meals on Wheels Program in Ames, said Darren Wolbers, Nutrition Club president.

Many members commit to volunteering once a semester, he said.

“While the Nutrition Club does not coordinate the program, we have as many members as possible volunteer their time,” said Wolbers, senior in dietetics.

Wolbers said the Meals on Wheels program provides one hot meal a day to people who might not get one otherwise.

“Primarily this includes elderly, infirm and disabled [people] who are unable to go out and purchase and … prepare food for themselves,” he said.

Wolbers said the Nutrition Club has participated in the program since he joined the club in 2000.

There are currently about 30 active members in the club, he said.

Julie Hemann, senior in dietetics, said the hot meals are labeled with recipient names and ready for her when she arrives at Mary Greeley Medical Center to pick them up.

There are six different meal delivery routes to be driven daily, said Patty Thoreson, Mary Greeley Medical Center employee. Thoreson said it is her job to assign six different volunteers to deliver the meals, which are delivered seven days a week, including holidays.

According to Thoreson, Ames businesses, fraternities, sororities and other organizations also provide volunteers for the program.

Thoreson said there are no eligibility requirements for receiving Meals on Wheels. Each low-salt, low-fat hot meal costs five dollars but assistance is available to defray the cost for recipients on fixed incomes.

The program also offers meals to accommodate diabetics and people with allergies, Thoreson said.

Hemann said her involvement with the Meals on Wheels program has been “eye-opening.”

She said she didn’t realize how many senior citizens there were in Ames before volunteering.

“It makes you appreciate what you have,” Hemann said.

For some senior citizens, the Meals on Wheels volunteer is the only person they see the entire day, she said.

Hemann said she does not deliver meals to the same people every time she volunteers, but many volunteers become friends with meal recipients.

“Sometimes the company is more important than the food,” she said. “They want to visit with you.”

Hemann said some recipients are unable to get out of bed to answer the door and it took courage for her to knock on the door and walk in the first time it was needed.

“[Delivering meals is] really a rewarding feeling,” she said. “You feel good knowing that you are making their day better by providing food and company.”