A new day dawns on the Meals on Wheels Cayman nonprofit organisation as it prepares to move into its permanent home after years of searching for a suitable place to meet the growing demands for food support.
Rob Imparato, the nonprofit’s chairman, recognised the move during his remarks at the annual Meals on Wheels ‘Orange You Glad’ gala on Saturday, 24 May at Grand Cayman Marriott Resort.
“It’s been a long time coming … we’re finally here,” Imparato said, confirming that a “generous landowner” had donated property to build a state-of-the-art, 2,000-square-foot facility in Industrial Park to serve George Town and West Bay.
Imparato said the nonprofit organisation, which provides free, hot, nutritious meals to Cayman’s seniors, the homebound and the disabled, will now have a kitchen, administrative offices, a pantry for supplementary groceries, a multipurpose room for community outreach and recreational use, and a vegetable garden.
With groundbreaking set for 6 June, Imparato confirmed construction will take about eight months, and the nonprofit will look to the first quarter of next year to celebrate opening the new facility.
Regarding the nonprofit, which currently serves up to 400 seniors across the island, Imparato said, “It requires a village to feed a senior, from our generous donors to our hardworking staff to our selfless volunteers — without whom none of this happens.”
Imparato thanked volunteers for the time they take out of their days, and using their own vehicles and their own gas money to deliver meals to people in need.
“The food we deliver each day will likely be the only meal our seniors receive all day, and their brief visit with our volunteer drivers will be their only daily interaction with the outside world. This is why we continue to do this — to restore independence and dignity to those we serve,” Imparato said.
‘Orange You Glad’ gala
More than 200 people attended this year’s sold-out ‘Orange You Glad’ gala, one of the largest annual fundraisers for the charity.
With orange as the annual theme colour, organisers transformed the Marriott’s Orchid Ballroom into a vibrant ‘Silk Road’, an Asian-inspired evening of culture, cuisine and community.
Attendees dressed in their best outfits in orange hues for the night of food, live entertainment and dancing. The night also included a live and silent auction of donated items, a henna station, a glam booth, activity stations, a best-dressed competition, and raffle prize drawings.
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Fantastic news for a great organization.