TAMPA, FL– PRESS ALERT: Meals On Wheels of Tampa Prepares for Hurricane Irma
Dear Meals On Wheels of Tampa Volunteers and Friends,
Meals On Wheels of Tampa is writing to share our plan and to ask for your help as we prepare for Hurricane Irma in the next few days. Our priorities are two-fold: 1) to ensure the safety of both our recipients and volunteers, and 2) to ensure the vulnerable population we serve will have the food they need to endure the storm.
With these priorities in mind, this is our plan:
Thursday, September 7 – We are asking our Thursday volunteers to deliver the hot meal as usual (we will not be delivering soup this week), and also to be prepared to deliver three additional items:
• A frozen meal, which will be labeled for Monday, Sept 11, and which will replace our normal Monday meal delivery (for the safety of all concerned, and in anticipation of potential flooding, MOW Tampa will not be delivering hot meals on Monday, September 11th).
• A “2 Day Shelf Stable Meal Emergency Kit”, which will be boxed and provide emergency food in case of a loss of power.
• Two information sheets entitled “Hillsborough County Evacuation Zones and Shelters” and “Urgent Information” which include important information for our recipients.
Meals On Wheels of Tampa realizes these items will add to the ‘normal’ load of our Thursday volunteers. We thank you in advance!
Friday, September 8 – We are asking our Friday volunteers to deliver the hot meal and weekend meals as usual, but also be prepared to deliver these additional items:
• Frozen meals, labeled Monday, Sept 11 (see above), to the few recipients who were not on the Thursday delivery routes
• A “2 Day Shelf Stable Meal Emergency Kit” (see above), to the few recipients who were not on the Thursday delivery routes
• Two information sheets entitled “Hillsborough County Evacuation Zones and Shelters” and “Urgent Information” which include important information for our recipients. This should be distributed to all recipients on your route.
Again, Meals On Wheels of Tampa realizes this will add to the normal load of our Friday volunteers. Thank you in advance for your amazing work!
Other Important Information – For the safety of all involved, MOW will not be delivering hot meals on Monday, September 11. The frozen meal labeled Sept 11, combined with the “2 Day Shelf Stable Emergency Kit” will provide the food need for our recipients that day. We are contacting media outlets to let them know we will not be delivering Monday. You can assist with getting the word out by reminding all your recipients at delivery on Thursday or Friday. At this point, depending on the track of the storm, Meals On Wheels of Tampa anticipate our offices will be open Monday to field calls and address any needs of our recipients as needed,
Your Help Needed! – Currently our main concern is to make sure each of our 73 routes are delivered Thursday and Friday in order to ensure the safety of our recipients. Understandably, we have several ‘open routes’ on both days, and the list of open routes is attached with this email. If you can help us on Friday by delivering a route, please call the office (813-238-8410) immediately to let us know.
My heartfelt thanks to each of you for everything you do for our mission as together we care for the homebound and seniors of our community! Rest assured we will do everything possible to ensure their safety and yours as we prepare for Hurricane Irma. If you have questions, please call the office or, if after office hours or on the weekend, my cell phone (listed below). You are an amazing group of people and Meals On Wheels of Tampa appreciates all you do for our mission!
With a grateful heart,
Stephen King, Executive Director
550 W. Hillsborough Ave. l Tampa, FL 33603
813-238-8410 (office) l 727-433-2584 (cell)
s.king@MOWTampa.org l www.MOWTampa.org
Open Routes for Friday, September 7, 2017
ET1
ET2
GL1
NE3
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NE8
About Meals On Wheels of Tampa:
Meals On Wheels of Tampa has been committed to nourishing and enriching the independent lives of the homebound and seniors of Tampa since 1975. Today, Meals On Wheels of Tampa serves over 700 people with a hot meal during the lunch hour. Meals On Wheels of Tampa is a 4-star charity and relies on its community for support by not accepting government funding.