Mike Villnave and Julie Campbell prepare Christmas dinners for the Massena Amvets Post 4. Over 250 dinners were served or delivered in Massena on Christmas Day. Photo courtesy of Massena Amvets.

MASSENA — Over 250 Christmas dinners were served by Massena Amvets Post 4 volunteers on Christmas Day again this year.

It continues a tradition for about the last15 years of providing for veterans and community members with options to eat in, take-out or delivery of their holiday meals.

“We had about 20 volunteers helping cook, serve, or deliver 175 of the meals to shut-ins,” said Amvets Commander Jim Gardner.

“I would like to thank everybody who helped out with this Christmas dinner. I would like to thank my wife, Susan, who cooked the 17 full turkeys and 8 turkey breasts, along with several other kitchen volunteers,” said Gardner.

Gardner also credited Mike Knowlton, of Knowlton and Sons Inc., Norwood, for donating 17 turkeys, and Vonda Davis for donating the cake.

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Sister Cindy Sullivan, left, has retired as Massena Meals on Wheels Executive Director. The new director is Stacie Sweet, right. Photo courtesy of Massena Meals on Wheels

BY CHERYL SHUMWAY

North Country This Week

MASSENA — Sister Cindy Sullivan, BVM, Executive Director of Massena Meals on Wheels, retired Dec. 22, after helping to provide meals to the elderly and disabled for the past seven years.

“It’s been a pleasure to work with everyone. I love working with all the volunteers,” said Sullivan.

The Meals on Wheels program delivers meals five days a week to approximately 85 clients, only closing during ice storms.

“The drivers are true volunteers. They drive through thick and thin. They don’t get paid a stipend for their gas,” she said. Sullivan pays them with baked cookies daily.

A graduate of Massena Central School in 1971, Sullivan said a lot of her former classmates are volunteer drivers.

“I like meeting all of our clients and getting to know them,” said Sullivan.

She visits each client yearly, and she calls clients twice a year, as part of the guidelines of the Office for the Aging.

Sullivan said she also likes to meet the community people, businesses, service clubs and organizations who help with fundraising.

“The community holds Meals on Wheels in high esteem. They are so generous to us. Without them, we couldn’t keep the wheels going,” she said.

“Lots of clients can’t give a contribution toward the cost of the meals,” she said.

The executive director must wear many hats. The job involves not only ordering food, planning menus, filling in as cook and driver when needed, and packaging food for delivery, but also payroll, budgeting, fundraising, grant writing, and correspondence.

Stacie Sweet is now the new executive director, having served as the Massena Meals on Wheels cook for the past year.

John Pache was hired as the new cook to replace Sweet. He previously worked at Jakes on the Water, Hannawa Falls, as a cook.

After…

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