July 2022 Letter from RCF Board Chair Robert Krysak

Greetings,

I hope this message finds you and your family well!

We are currently reviewing the 2022 grant applications. It is with great pleasure that we will be inviting you to our annual celebration of the grants for an in-person event this year, the first time in two years! We will be celebrating your tremendous generosity to our community. Watch for the announcement of the date and location to be sent to our members in the near future.

It was wonderful to see many of you at the home of board member, Cindy Galloway and her husband Jeffrey Wells. It was an enjoyable evening outdoors at their lovely home. We truly appreciate the hospitality extended to members and friends of the Ramona Community Foundation. We were honored to welcome a new member that evening.

We hope you are staying safe and enjoying your summer. See you in October!

Bob Krysak
RCF Board Chair

Grantee Spotlight: Ramona Senior Center and “Ramona Meals on Wheels”

Grant funding to the Ramona Senior Center received from the Ramona Community Foundation allowed nutritious meals to be provided to seniors, especially those in need, through the home-delivered meal program “Meals on Wheels.” Last fiscal year, a total of 106,237 meals were served to seniors in nine different zip codes.

With the COVID-19 pandemic continuing longer than expected, the center continued to modify their method of ensuring that the senior population received meals. The number of seniors receiving meal delivery stayed around 240 per day for much of the year divided among five delivery routes. To­ go meals were additionally offered that could be picked up at lunch time instead of at the center’s congregate dining. It was noted that many seniors enjoyed this option to drive through and pick up a meal to eat at home, and between 50 to 75 seniors were served per day in this manner. An additional breakfast was offered as a second meal per day to all seniors for much of the year. Luckily, congregate dining was re-opened on June 15, 2021. The center continues to learn how to serve seniors safely in the congregate environment.

Money received from all community partners, and especially the Ramona Community Foundation, has allowed the center to continue to serve an aging population by providing a nutritious meal, as well as a welfare check three times per week for those on the home-delivered routes. The Ramona Senior Center looks forward to continuing their partnership with the Ramona Community Foundation to make a difference in individual lives by helping to provide a basic need.