Despite limited funds due to COVID-19, YMCA delivered lunches to seniors

Photo by Marty Cheek
Kitchen staff at the Mt. Madonna YMCA make more than 200 lunches every day for senior citizens in Gilroy, Morgan Hill and San Martin.

By Marty Cheek

The staff at the Mt. Madonna YMCA holds a passion to make sure South Valley senior citizens can enjoy a hot meal during the middle of the day.

Photo courtesy Mt. Madonna YMCA
Children play games at the the Super Power Summer Camp program in Gilroy.

It’s 11 o’clock on a recent Tuesday morning and a growing line of parked cars and trucks snakes along the curb of the road through Morgan Hill’s Community Park.

They curve right into the Centennial Recreation Center’s parking lot. At the front of the line, the CRC’s Senior Center workers hand white plastic bags full of food to senior citizens inside the vehicles.

The 115 lunches distributed that day includes roast beef, a baked potato and veggies. An additional 100 more packaged lunches will travel a dozen miles to the south at noon to the Gilroy Senior Center.

The Mt. Madonna YMCA provides great benefit to the South Valley region. From children to senior citizens, residents from Gilroy, San Martin and Morgan Hill find their lives transformed by the various programs “the Y” organizes. After two long years of COVID-19 which prevented the annual fundraising campaign, the nonprofit needs the community’s aid to continue helping members of the South Valley public enjoy a higher quality of life. Starting March 1, it’s holding a six-week fundraising campaign to raise a total of $100,000 to help pay for its programs.

It has already received about $20,000, including a $10,000 donation from the Edward Boss Prado Foundation, as well as another $10,000 in individual donations.

“We’re always advocating and providing for all of our members and community members to make sure they have access to nutrition, youth programs and after-school childcare,” said Jessica Redfield, associate executive director with the Mt. Madonna YMCA. “There’s a need in all the cities. South County has a lot of need.”

The programs help people in Morgan Hill, San Martin and Gilroy in achieving a good quality of life. They include group exercise classes, a state-of-the art gym and indoor swimming pool at the CRC, kids camps and day camps, and teen programs.

With COVID-19 impacting the economy, the Mt. Madonna Y saw a rise in need at the same time they experienced a fall in funding.

Former activities before COVID-19 at the Senior Center.

They somehow found ways to keep the various nutrition and childcare and educational programs going, but it was difficult during the past two years, Redfield said.

“A lot happened during COVID,” she said. “Even our members who did not need financial assistance before had to go either from a dual working family to a family where one parent had to stay home for on-line schooling. Some lost their jobs. And a lot of people had family members who got sick and they had to step away from their jobs to care for their family members.”

It’s hard to ask for donations when everyone is struggling, she said. So with the pandemic declining in its impact, the Y staff decided the spring campaign is the right time to seek funds.

Sandra Madriles, nutrition coordinator for the Senior Cafe, serves barbecue ribs at the Halloween-themed lunch Oct. 30 several years ago. 
Photo by Marty Cheek

Co-chairing Redfield with the campaign is Leo Khooshabeh, community and family program director. He has worked at the YMCA for 20 years since he started at age 15 as a basketball game referee for the youth program. He encourages residents to donate because all the money stays local.

“Truly, you get to see where the money goes and you get to see the impact of the money,” he said. “So it’s not like it goes into this fund and you don’t see it for a while. As soon as the money comes in, it’s being divvied out to help with the programs.”

Khooshabeh is involved with the delivery program that brings lunch to home-bound seniors who have difficulty getting their meals. Often when he shows up at their door with the food packaged up, the seniors get so happy to have a hot meal. Some have even started crying in front of him because they are so appreciative.

“Even if it’s a couple of blocks, it’s a struggle for them to drive,” Khooshabeh said. “Working with the seniors has been the most impactful time that I’ve had throughout my time at the Y.  You see the results day in and day out.”

When COVID-19’s risk to public health forced the closing of the Senior Center facility, the Y’s staff determined that they would keep the kitchen open to make sure seniors did not go hungry.

Heading the cooking staff, Sandra Madriles, senior nutrition coordinator, has served as the face of the center’s lunch program for many years.

The staff asked her if it was possible to keep the program going during the pandemic and she replied, “We can do this. My team will do this.” Madriles admits she and her staff didn’t know at first how to make it work. They had to tweak the menu because items such as soups and salads were hard to package for transport without the right kind of containers.

Before COVID-19, senior citizens enjoy a friendly game of pool at the Centenniel Recreation Senior Center.
Photo courtesy City of Morgan Hill.

And they had to make sure the staff was safe from exposure to the virus. They also doubled their meals from 95 to 200 lunches a day every weekday to provide for both Gilroy and Morgan Hill’s senior centers.

“It was crazy at the beginning. I’m not kidding you,” she said. “But through the days and the months, we found ways to do it . . . We had to change everything. No Jell-o or cake. Everything had to be pre-packaged.”

The nutrition program for seniors and the after-school programs and summer reading camps to help children with their education continued despite the pandemic’s inconveniences, said Andrea Nicolette, the Mt. Madonna YMCA’s executive director.

“The world shut down, and the Y was still out there, and I think that was a big pride point for us,” she said. “After-school is such a big part of what we’re doing right now.”

Because of the limited funds, the Y had to cancel its sports programs. The staff had to make the difficult decision to shut down its basketball for a year because they haven’t been able to help with the scholarships.

It costs $120 per child to participate in the basketball program and the Y often subsidized half of that cost for families with financial struggles.

The Y can make a big difference in the life of a young person, Nicolette said. Getting involved in the reading programs or sports can help prevent youths from getting into drugs or joining a gang.

“It’s an investment in our kids and it’s an investment in our seniors. I see it as an investment to our community,” she said.

Redfield agrees. And that’s why she encourages South Valley residents and businesses who can afford a donation to help keep the programs going.

“For me, you’re not giving to the Y, you’re giving back to your community,” she said. “You’re helping those around you, and you’re making your community a better and healthier place to be. You’re taking care of your neighbor.”

Khooshabeh suggests South Valley residents who want to contribute to the quality of life of their fellow residents should consider a financial donation. For those who find it hard to write a big check, he suggests that they participate in a regular donation system such as $10 a month.

“If you really want to see and make an impact in your community, this organization, if you donate to it, can make that happen,” he said. “I know there are a bunch of other places where people are able to give their money. But if you’re truly passionate about helping these specific groups that we help serve, then I genuinely feel this will be the right organization to donate to to make that happen. You actually get to see your dollars at work.”