Redlands Meals on Wheels honors top volunteers at annual luncheon

By: Nelda Stuck, Special to Community Forward Redlands News

REDLANDS - Greg Romer and Robert Shockley received Redlands Meals on Wheels' Gertrude Hagum top service award at their recent annual volunteers appreciation luncheon in First United Methodist Church's Dike Chapel.

The award is named for Redlands MOW's founder of 55 years ago. Romer joined Redlands MOW in 2025, although he has been affiliated with MOW programs in Orange County where he resided. He is a regular deliverer, a chairman one day/month and subs as a chairman and deliverer when needed.

He became a board member soon after joining and was recently elected vice president. He sets up training, designs and prints posters that advertise the RMOW program to prospective clients.

Shockley began as a volunteer in 2014. He comes every day, rain or shine, and helps each chairman set up the delivery bags and meets the food delivery truck from Plymouth Village, helping to bring the food into the set-up area. He is a regular deliverer every week and subs for all of the chairmen when they need an extra deliverer.

Receiving the 2026 Golden Penguin Awards for extra service to RMOW this past year were John Lackner, Don Lewis, Dexter Cole, Sarah Cole, Marilee Rendulich, Perry Scott and Jamie Portney.

A Special Recognition Plaque was awarded to Anetta Theo, director of Food Services for Plymouth Village. For many years, RMOW has contracted with the retirement community to supply the regular meals. An additional route for special diet meals is assembled at Redlands Community Hospital.

Receiving certificates noting their first year as volunteers were Donna Barnhart, Carol Whitmer, Karen Randolph, Sharon Frazer, Steve Frazer and Natacha Frache.

At the annual meeting Dexter Cole was elected for another term as RMOW president. Other officers are Greg Romer, vice president; John Biddick, treasurer; Dale Whitehurst, recording secretary; Karen Flippin, corresponding secretary; and Mary Hylkema, financial secretary.

Other board members are Sarah Van Tassel, John Egan, Les Kong, Kathy Warren, Nancy Holland and Bill Houlette Ex-officio member is Cindy Perkins, who oversees the regular diet program.

Overseeing the church kitchen weekdays as the meals arrive for the separate routes are Jan Rodgers and Bev Woolverton (each do two days) Nancy Holland, Kathy Warren, Jill Buroker, Karen Flippin, Greg Romer, Gwen Young and John
Lackner.

President Cole noted that although clients generally pay the cost of the meals, these charges do not cover costs of insurance, telephone, supplies, postage, and other costs of operating. He praised the top financial support helping cover these costs as coming from the Knights of the Round Table, both their local and national organization.

Emmaus Church (previously Bethany Church) on Cajon Street each year since 1988 has prepared a traditional Thanksgiving meal and delivers it to the Meals on Wheels clients each year.

First United Methodist Church has continued to sponsor the pick-up location for the daily delivery of food since COVID and renovation of Joslyn Senior Center.

Redlands Meals on Wheels at this time can add senior clients to their overall hot meal schedule, whether needing food during a hospital recovery at home; during lengthy illness; for long-term disabilities or needing help daily with good nutrition.  The intake process involves a telephone contact where RMOW ensures prospective clients live in Redlands or Mentone.

After information is obtained which is needed for delivery, the client begins receiving food. Volunteers are always needed to keep the weekday four regular routes running, plus the six-day Redlands Community Hospital special diet delivery.

Each of the five routes requires a driver and ride-along navigator to deliver to the usually 10-12 clients on each of the mapped-out driving routes of Redlands.

Each route usually takes 60-90 minutes as deliverers make sure clients are home to receive the meal and check on their status. The ride-along training program is easy, as each navigator follows a precise updated notebook of directions.

Volunteers can request a certain day of the week and may deliver all four or five times per month, or can volunteer on an alternating-week basis.

To volunteer, phone coordinator Karen Flippin, 909-793-9497; or to request help with meals, phone the kitchen number at 909-792-0716. Meals on Wheels was incorporated in Redlands in 1970.