Virginia Colvin doesn’t get out of her New Port Richey home very often. But thanks to Meals on Wheels, her freezer is stocked with food for a week.
"Without the Meals on Wheels, we would be up a creek,” she said.
Virginia said she lives on her social security, and Pasco County’s Elderly Nutrition Department is her lifeline.
“It would either be not eat very much, and pay bills. Or not pay very many bills and eat,” she said.
President Trump’s outline for next year’s budget cuts more than $6 billion from the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Meals on Wheels is one of the programs that could be effected.
It delivers food to hundreds of homebound elderly residents and there is a waiting list to join.
Those in charge of Pasco’s program say they’ve had to handle threats to the budget before.
“Whatever congress decides we are going to have to deal with it,” said program director Gabriel Papadopoulos.
The Federal budget blueprint suggests some of the anti-poverty programs they will cut are not well targeted to the poorest populations and not demonstrating results.
“We are going to be ok with the support of the community. We can’t do it ourselves. We need everybody’s support,” said Papadopoulos.
Pasco Meals on Wheels gets funding at the local level and also relies on contributions and volunteers.
Nationally donations and volunteer sign-ups already saw dramatic increases after the White House announced the proposed cuts.
For more information on the Pasco elderly neutron program visit their website.
Watch a video about Pasco’s Meals and Wheels below:
----------------------------
STAY IN TOUCH WITH US ANYTIME, ANYWHERE
Download our free app for Apple and Android and Kindle devices.
Sign up for Breaking News email alerts.
WATCH | Latest ABC Action News Videos | WATCH | ABC Action News Live Stream
