Volunteer Spotlight: Sheila Menard, Chehalem Senior Center
Sheila Menard, dishing up hospitality at the senior center
by ISAAC ARTHUR
“I just knocked on the door, and they said, ‘Come on in!’ And so I did.”
Sheila Menard moved to Newberg in the middle of 2013 to be with her grandchildren. Before long, she started looking for ways to volunteer, connect with the community, and meet other people her age. A year later, she found a place that would offer her all of that: the Chehalem Senior Center. “They had two openings,” says Sheila. “Either I could work at the front desk or I could work in the kitchen — and I prefer to be busy with my hands.” That was eight years ago.
Chehalem Senior Center, a hub of local activity and social gathering for Newberg’s older residents, partners with Northwest Senior & Disability Services (NWSDS) to provide hot and cold meals to people that need them, delivered straight to their door (i.e. Meals-on-Wheels). Each week, Monday through Friday, the kitchen is buzzing as a small but mighty army of volunteers from the community — marshaled by CPRD Senior Programming Specialist, Sarah Larison — work to prepare, package, and deliver fresh lunches to their neighbors. There are four drivers and three, or so, food handlers on a typical day, Sheila often among them. Together they deliver an average of 90 hot meals and over 100 frozen meals a day to Newberg residents.
Before the pandemic, the senior center also offered in-person lunches. Today, the dining room is closed, but Sheila and the others have kept coming in to serve up food ready for delivery. These programs were needed long before the last couple of years, but they’re especially important during times like these. Sheila says she feels inspired by the folks she’s met at the Senior Center, both volunteers and guests, especially her elders: “I mean, to think that someone in their 90s is still volunteering is remarkable!” she says. Activities have paused, people who used to be regulars have had to stay home, and precautions are still being taken to operate safely. But as restrictions slowly start to lift, Sheila is looking forward to the day when the dining room is full again: “I’m sure they miss it because it was a great social time for them too. So it’ll be nice when they can open up that again,” (though she notes, “I understand them being cautious.”)
The home-delivered meals program brings food to those that need it, a friendly face at the door, and ease of mind for recipients and their loved ones. Sheila calls it a “godsend,” and hopes that others might consider joining the team.
“We’d love to see more volunteers. It’s just a really friendly, welcoming place to work, and if you can spare a few hours a day once a week, or once a month... It’d be so nice to get more people involved.”
If you are interested in becoming part of the Senior Meals Crew or volunteering at Chehalem Senior Center in other capacities, please visit www.cprdnewberg.org or call (503) 538-1409.
