Words by Andrew Williams

When disaster strikes, the work of local heroes at organizations like Meals on Wheels PLUS is vital.

Melanie Nelson, a long-time Meals on Wheels PLUS volunteer, dedicates many Tuesdays to double-checking packing lists and loading cars for drivers deployed to deliver frozen meals to homebound seniors in the Manatee County community. 

The delight in helping others keeps her coming back.

“I just enjoy doing it,” Melanie says. “I like having a process down where I feel like I'm making a difference here.”

Melanie is an empty nester who works at home near Lakewood Ranch. She uses her free time to be available should Meals on Wheels PLUS call her to work more hours beyond her traditional commitment, whether on the weekends or during hurricane recovery.

She especially appreciates how organized the Meals on Wheels PLUS of Manatee team is when responding to disasters, such as a hurricane roaring toward Florida’s Gulf Coast.

“When we know a hurricane is coming, preparations start days before the storm because we never know when a storm will turn like this one did and come towards us,” Melanie says. “Staff always plan ahead, and volunteers always seem willing to jump in when they're available to do extra deliveries or help distribute food. As a community, everyone in this area is pretty amazing.”

Melanie says preparations launch even sooner than that—starting at the beginning of the summer, with the delivery of commodity boxes containing seven shelf-stable meals of non-perishable foods, like canned goods, in case homebound seniors lose power and refrigeration capabilities. They want to avoid the worst-case scenario: seniors going hungry even when power returns.

As hurricane season approaches, a second round of “extras,” such as the large orange buckets found at Home Depot in 2023, were provided during meal routes. They stocked buckets with flashlights, batteries, and other hurricane-preparedness supplies.

Their disaster response scenario requires drivers to complete three to four days of routes in a single day. Volunteers like Melanie are working double time to ensure everything is in order. Their service could mean the difference between a homebound senior having critical nourishment before, during, and immediately after a storm.

As a member of the community, Melanie witnessed firsthand the extent of the devastation, which drove home the need to act.

With the eye of the storm passing over the community, food distribution in the days that followed was harrowing. Volunteers encountered broken streets or traffic lights, mobile home roofs ripped off by powerful winds, downed powerlines, flood waters, and collapsed walls.

The community’s response was tremendous. Residents stepped up to help seniors by placing tarps over their homes and doing other tasks to help others stabilize.

Melanie says selflessness is a driving force during these tragedies. Selflessness means finding the motivation to lift someone else once one's needs are met.

“When they call and ask, “Is everyone okay? Can anyone come in and help us pack food and maybe distribute some food? Absolutely,” Melanie implores. “We made it through. We [thought we] can now take that step to help others stabilize after the storm.”

Even before the call to action, Melanie felt that yearning. Volunteers like Melanie share an inherent quality: a deep empathy for neighborhoods in peril.

“We started seeing all of these pictures, everything that's happening on the beach and all the other areas around us from the storm, and I realized I am physically able to go help,” Melanie says. “We're safe, but there are many people who weren’t safe, many people in mobile homes who aren't safe. Anything we can do to help people, even if it’s just taking the time to pack food and get it out quickly to them. Because time is of the essence to those people, especially the elderly.”