Photo by Emilie Lutostanski

Community leaders including Cedar Park Mayor Matt Powell, left, Leander Mayor Pro Tem Jason Dishongh and Leander Mayor Chris Fielder demonstrate how food can be transported from the Meals on Wheels facility in Leander to homes of seniors throughout the area.

Community leaders in Leander and Cedar Park hope to draw attention to the local Meals on Wheels program in March.

During the nationwide 2014 March for Meals campaign, Meals of Wheels of Williamson–Burnet County will participate in activities that bring awareness to the nonprofit and its mission to provide nutritional food and socialization for homebound seniors.

The Austin Toros professional basketball organization offered the local Meals on Wheels organization 50 percent of the proceeds from online ticket sales from the March 7 game at the Cedar Park Center and also hosted a silent auction to benefit the program. Meals on Wheels of Williamson–Burnet County is participating in Central Texas fundraising event Amplify Austin March 20–21.

On March 17, Leander Mayor Chris Fielder helped deliver meals, and Cedar Park Mayor Matt Powell toured the nonprofit's facility at 351 N. Bagdad Road, Leander. Leander Mayor Pro Tem Jason Dishongh said the program, which delivers meals to seniors each weekday, is in need of monetary and volunteer support.

"Right now, there are a lot of people they can't serve just because they don't have the facility to do it," Dishongh said.

March for Meals is a national campaign initiated and sponsored by the Meals On Wheels Association of America to raise awareness of senior hunger and to encourage action in local communities. Hundreds of senior nutrition programs in the United States promote March for Meals through public events, partnerships with local businesses, volunteer recruitment and fundraising initiatives.

"In this tough economy, the food and human contact we provide to seniors in this community is needed more than ever," said Christopher Douglas, director of Meals on Wheels of Williamson-Burnet County. "We need the community to come out and support our March for Meals events. Our clients are counting on us. We can't let them down."

According to the organization, Meals on Wheels of Williamson-Burnet County serves more than 144,000 meals annually to nutritionally at-risk, low-income and rural clients. More information is available at www.wbco.net.