2021 Annual Report to Donors

Thanks to you, St. Vincent Meals on Wheels delivered 845,791 meals to the homebound and hungry of Los Angeles in 2021!

The ongoing nature of the Covid-19 pandemic presented added challenges for L.A. seniors who continued to be isolated and on lockdown. The availability of vaccinations helped many seniors be able to come off our meal program for portions of the year.  However, repeated surges in the community transmission of the virus meant some seniors began and stopped meals over and over corresponding to the threat of the virus in the community.  This led to a record number of 3150 seniors on the program this year (compared with 2557 in 2020 and 1840 in 2019). The constant fluctuation in client counts and census were challenging to the operations of the program. Supply chain issues and costs also presented challenges.  But, with your love and support we ensured that our homebound seniors continued to seamlessly receive the very best nutrition.

To continue to impact the isolation of our seniors, social connection programming continued to be a focus this year with the expansion of our social call program and the launch of our Talking Tech programs.  These vital programs offer seniors a way to connect virtually to our volunteers, their families, their medical providers and other seniors.

Without your support, we couldn’t have served every shut-in senior who needed a lifeline of meals and wellness checks.

Looking forward, our 2022 budget is $9.3 million. Meal clients and program revenues will provide about $1.9 million. The remaining $7.4 million must come from caring people like you.

We rely on private charitable donations—not the government—so you are essential to our mission. We are grateful for your partnership during this challenging year. Together, we’ll keep the food and love coming in 2022.

Veronica Dover
CEO/Executive Director

3,150 People Served

Thanks to you, we served 3,150 homebound seniors and adults with serious illnesses and disabilities across Los Angeles. All meals are prepared with high-quality ingredients and are tailored to the dietary requirements of each senior.

845,791 Meals Served!

In 2021 we served 845,791 meals, or 2,317 every day!

  • Hot and Frozen Meals: 536,364 (63% of all meals)

  • Snacks: 6,343 (1% of all meals)

  • Breakfasts: 303,084 (36% of all meals)

Our cost to provide each senior with daily nourishing meals and regular wellness checks is about $10.

It Costs only $10.00 to Provide Each Senior with Daily Meals and Regular Wellness Checks

Percent of Cost by Meal Type:

Meals for Special Diets

A Closer Look at SVMOW’s Medically Responsive Diets:

Wheels

Our 24 vans drove 80,945 miles in 2021. That’s 311 miles a day! Our gas expense was $35,102.45

2021 Sources of Donor Support

* We rely on your donations for the majority of our operating budget!

79%*

Individual Gifts
Estates
Trusts

5%

Corporations

15%

Foundations

1%

Organizations

You Extended a Lifeline

In 2021, our Client Advocates assessed the health and safety of new and long-term clients. They helped clients with referrals for healthcare, mental health counseling, veteran’s benefits, Social Security benefits, in-home support services, housing, and medical equipment.

Thanks to you they were also able to provide some basic emergency needs such as microwaves to heat meals, Brita water filters, nutritional supplements such as Ensure.

If seniors were no longer able to remain independent in their own homes, referrals were made to agencies that assist with relocation options.

Meals for Community Organizations

In 2021, we provided nutritious meals at our cost to these community organizations:

  • Alta Med PACE (multiple locations)

  • City of El Segundo Outreach
  • Culver Palms Meals on Wheels
  • The Good Shepherd Manor
  • Jardin De La Infancia
  • Pasadena Meals on Wheels

  • The Salvation Army Corps Glendale

  • Meals on Wheels West
  • Meals on Wheels of West Los Angeles
  • Missionary Brothers of Charity
  • St. Barnabas Senior Services
  • Torrance/Lomita Meals on Wheels
  • United American Indian Involvement Inc.
  • Food Finders (undelivered meals go to shelters)

SUPPORT GROUPS IN 2021

Circle of Angels

316 generous and compassionate donors provided a circle of support for our seniors through gifts of $500 to over $50,000.

The Breakfast Club

179 Breakfast Club members donated $1 or more a day to deliver breakfast to clients who depend on us for everything they eat.

Cuisine à Roulettes

We have rejuvenated our amazing auxiliary group and we will soon have in-person fundraising events.
Stay tuned!

Corporate Partners

Our top 10 most generous corporate partners in 2021 include:

Calmoseptine Inc.
Employees Community Fund of Boeing
Professional Environmental Marketing Association
Community Betterment Service
Onni Contracting (California) Inc.
The Benevity Community Impact Fund
R. W. Zant Co.
Doozy Cards LLC
RBB Architects, Inc.
Sony Pictures Entertainment

Volunteers Take on New Challenges During the Pandemic

“Volunteering is at the very core of being a human.”
–Heather French Henry

In 2021, 268 volunteers with unwavering optimism stepped up to help during the ongoing pandemic. They served as drivers, meal delivery runners, kitchen aides, grocery assemblers, office support, pet food deliverers, telephone buddies, and tech mentors. The pandemic spurred our organization to offer more remote volunteer opportunities, thus we expanded our Social Call/Telephone Buddy program and launched the first-ever Tech Mentor opportunity to teach our clients new skills and technology. It’s in our nature as humans to connect with other people. Social Call and Tech Mentor volunteers connect our clients to the community and the world.

For our clients we continue to receive cheery cards and messages of love from hundreds of volunteers locally and throughout the United States including high schools and children’s clubs. Some of the cards include word search puzzles and silly jokes. Our clients collect their favorite and re-read for inspiration and a chuckle. A new partner is the Color a Smile organization in New Jersey. They deliver cheerful drawings from children as young as age 3. Our clients especially enjoy the creations of these youngest volunteers. Every act is valuable from our everyday heroes!