LIBERTY — Pickens County Meals on Wheels (PCMOW) will provide 2,000 emergency/holiday meals to 200 homebound seniors in Pickens County thanks to a grant from Duke Energy.

The meals will be used to supplement the traditional home-delivered meal service which consists of a hot nutritious meal, a friendly visit and a safety check each week day. The $9,920 grant from the Duke Energy Foundation will help PCMOW provide eight holiday meals and two shelf-stable emergency meals each to the 200 clientsbetween Sept. 1 and Feb. 28. Holiday meals will be delivered the last business day prior to the holiday, and emergency meals will be delivered in January and February in anticipation of inclement weather.

“Our weekday deliveries provide the much needed piece of mind that allows the most vulnerable seniors to remain safely in their own home and live with the dignity, respect and independence they deserve,” said Meta Bowers, executive director of Pickens County Meals on Wheels. “This grant will enhanceexisting services by providing our clients with an added sense of comfort because they will know they will have a nutritious meal during scheduled holiday closures as well as during unscheduled inclement weather closures.”

In a typical year, emergency/holiday meals are only delivered as funding permits, Bowers said.

“Caring for our senior neighbors is a community effort,” said Emily DeRoberts, government and community relations manager for Duke Energy. “Day in and day out,Meals on Wheels is there for the seniors who need them.Duke Energy is proud to do its part to help to ensure the generation that took care of us are not forgotten, hungry or alone.”

PCMOW is one of 5,000 programs throughout the United States dedicated to making sure no senior is ever left isolated or hungry. By 2050, the number of seniors in the country will more than double. Already, the most vulnerable group of seniors — those over age 85 — are the fastest-growing segment of the entire U.S. population. The need for Meals on Wheels services is growing at an unprecedented rate. No one plans to need the services offered by PCMOW, but the effects of aging, illness, isolation and diminishing resources do not discriminate.

Volunteers, donors and corporate partners, like Duke Energy, are vital to the Meals on Wheels program. Their contributions of time, talent and treasure are the perfect example of how each of us can do our own small part, so together, we can deliver.

Services offered by Pickens County Meals on Wheels are crucial to helping seniors cope with the three biggest threats of aging: hunger, isolation and loss of independence. The frequent deliveries provide the much needed peace of mind that allows the frailest and most vulnerable seniors to remain safely in their own homes and live with the dignity, respect and independence they deserve. To find out more about how you can get involved, visit www.pcmow.org, or call Marsha Robertson at (864) 712-0289 or (864) 855-3770.