Meals on Wheels Driver

Save to Favorites

Skills Required: positive attitude, enjoys working with people, clean driving record, organization, ability to map directions in Iowa City area, lift no more than 10 Ibs.

Time Required: 2 hours per route (weekly, biweekly, etc.)

We are in need of skilled volunteers to deliver meals to the sick or elderly Monday through Saturday. Volunteers undergo a background check and an hour of training with the volunteer coordinator before shadowing an experienced driver on a route.

After the training session, volunteers are asked to meet at the pick up location between 10:30am and 11am to collect the meals and materials needed for their route. Volunteers are given route sheets which include the name and address of each client along the route. Directions are also included in the route sheets which will guide the volunteer through the route. At each stop, the volunteer should read the driving instructions and deliver the meal either directly to the client at the door or place the meal in the cooler provided by Elder Services, Inc. If the client is not home, place a "Sorry we miss you,"note on their door and return the meal to the pick up location at the end of the route. Our clients are always pleased to see the volunteers everyday, this experience is both rewarding for the client and for the volunteer. When all the meals have been delivered, the materials are delivered back to the pick up location.

Our routes cover Iowa City, Coralville, and North Liberty. We deliver hot lunches to approximately 130 clients each day. These clients include the homebound elderly, disabled individuals, and individuals recovering from recent surgery. Our clients are placed on one of seven routes during the week and one of six routes on the weekend. Most of our volunteers do routes weekly or biweekly and substitute as they can. Our greatest need for volunteers is currently on Saturdays. However, we will not turn away volunteers because their availability does not fall on this day. We do our best to work with your availability and try to make the experience as rewarding for you as it is for our clients.