One bright and sunny morning in Spotsylvania, Va., a white catering van pulled into the lot of the Asbury Manor Senior Apartments. Inside were dozens of hot meals for the seniors of Asbury Manor.
Donna Woodard, a resident there, reached out to the WUSA9 Little Wishes team. She explained most of them are on a fixed income, struggling to make ends meet. “My little wish is to see senior citizens taken care of,” she says. “I worry about them.”
Dave Curfiss knows the residents at Asbury Manor Apartments well. He does all the maintenance and sees the struggles first hand. “They have a hard time. They have the food pantry that comes in and they only get a certain number of things and that’s it. They have to go out and spend money. They are living off an income, a base income, it’s hard for them,” says Curfiss.
“Coming in here and talking with some of these people, you hear stories that you just don’t believe in this day and age can really happen,” said Kevin Linnane, Director of Operations for Dutch Mill Catering. “You know, that seniors can be forgotten about, or their food is second rate. They should be getting the best of the best.”
Dutch Mill Catering heard about the need at the senior home from WUSA9 and decided to help.
“By getting a well-balanced meal, their entire lifestyle is increased,” says Linnane.
Dutch Mill Catering and the Little Wishes team knocked on the doors of residents to deliver the hot meals and gathered some of them for a party in a florescent-lit community room with folding tables.
Miss Tilly Rose was one of the first stops. She told the team one of her holiday meals was a can of chicken noodle soup. After getting two hot, fresh meals, she hugged everyone in the crew.
“I want to thank you,” says 91-year-old Gwen Woolford. “I’m sure you have nicer things [to do] more suited to your age, but instead you’re here with old folks like me. God bless you people.”
She was moved to tears as she talked about her family that rarely visits and how thankful she was for the hot meals.
“You don’t know how it feels that a 91-year-old woman is getting hugs from young people! I don’t see my young people. They are all so busy,” says Woolford.
“You sure know how to brighten up an old lady’s life,” she said.
“You heard a lot of them say they got family that doesn’t even come visit them. I’m like a son to a lot of them in there...Today showed them that there are people out here who do love and care for them,” Curfiss said.
If you’d like to help make an Impact for the seniors at Asbury Manor Apartments, you can drop off donations of food or other household supplies at the Asbury Manor Apartments front office located at 10235 Brittany Commons Blvd, Fredericksburg, VA 22553 on Monday, Tuesday or Thursday from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m.
You can also help support the Fredericksburg Regional Food Bank and their Commodity Supplemental Food Program which helps provide food boxes each month to about 20 seniors at Asbury Manor Apartments.
About Impact: Little Wishes – Sometimes it’s the littlest things that have the biggest Impact. Our WUSA9 journalists put “wish” jars around town and asked people online, “What’s your little wish?”
Then we connected neighbors with neighbors to help make those dreams come true. If you have a little wish or would like to help us grant a little wish, please email impact@wusa9.com.