Our current members’ ages ranges from 55 - 94 years old. As you age, your immune system slows. For seniors, this can mean a serious impact on health when exposed to bacteria and other pathogens. We do our best to hand-wash our members’ dishes after our meal program. However, a dishwasher that can reach a much higher water temperature would assure proper sanitation of our kitchen essentials and lower the risk of possible illnesses. Currently, we do not prepare any uncooked meat in our facility but other food borne pathogens could be introduced into our kitchen via vegetables and fruits. By installing a larger three compartment sink, we can properly soak our produce, separate from where we pre-wash and rinse our dishes. A garbage disposal would also allow us to dispose of food waste eliminating the additional possibility of cross contamination.

Our current front door threshold creates a significant challenge for our senior members that require a walker for stability. If a volunteer or employee isn’t in the kitchen when a member with a walker arrives, they must: prop open our heavy metal door, lift their walker up our makeshift 2x8” ramp, with a 2” incline and down another 2x8” ramp inside. Which may not sound significant to anyone who is able bodied but at 94 years old, lifting a walker up 2 inches for almost two feet is a challenging risk. One we would like to avoid.

​Our members deserve a clean and sanitary restroom that meets ADA requirements. In 2022-2023, our volunteers and employees have put in “sweat equity” to improve our restrooms. We have installed a pony wall to hide the urinal, installed baseboards and painted. However, the need to update fixtures (toilets, urinal, sinks etc.) still exists.