Meet Loretta: A MOWMC Participant
BY AYLIN ISMAYILOVA
"I get so much more than just the food," said Loretta, an 87-year-old participant with Meals on Wheels of Mercer County (MOWMC). Meals on Wheels is more than just a meal; it's about human connection.
Loretta is a jack of all trades; she's an actor, an educator, and an advocate. She is also independent by nature; it's she and her walker against the world. With her outgoing personality, she believes she can do anything she wants despite limitations with her mobility. Loretta insists there's always someone willing to help, including the volunteers at MOWMC.
Lynn, a regular volunteer in East Windsor whom Loretta calls an "angel," delivers meals twice a week. Like many other volunteers, Lynn never fails to ask if there's anything else she can do to help, and for Loretta it's a lifeline. The offer means a lot because it's genuine, and sometimes she takes her up on it.
Loretta doesn't take the volunteer visits for granted. In fact, they allow her to stay connected with her community from home.
"You don't realize that you can be in your house and not see or talk to anyone. You may talk on the phone and you may even use FaceTime, but there's nothing like human beings standing in your house or standing at your door."
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Meeting volunteers like Early, a man with a full, long beard and colorful outfits, or even the Mayor of East Windsor, who stopped by to deliver her meal in March, is part of the Meals on Wheels experience.
Loretta combats loneliness every day, but there was a time she didn't have to think about it. Loretta often recalls her "sweetheart in heaven," her late husband, and how his passing was so abrupt. They've talked about death before, but "when it really kicks in, I promise you, you're not ready," she said.
Losing her husband was an unexpected change, but she slowly started adjusting to this new lifestyle. About two years later, the pandemic isolated everyone, including Loretta, who lost her church congregation and access to her friends on top of the loss of her love. Coupled with her mobility issues, it made it more difficult to get out of the house on her own.
"I'm blessed because I'm resourceful and I have good friends and Meals on Wheels is a part of what helps people go on," Loretta reflected.
She values her independence, and resources like Meals on Wheels help her maintain it. They help older adults like her stay independent. Loretta has the support and the will, and with that in her back pocket, there's nothing that she can't do.
"I'm single again. After 20 or 30 years of being a team; we were a couple. We did things together, we planned things, and thought about things and fought about things, but we were a team," she said. "When one of the team members leaves like that, the other one has to decide to stop or go ahead."
Luckily, Loretta chose to go ahead. For herself, for everyone who loves her, and her "sweetheart in heaven."