Major contributors include a $10,000 donation from the Edward Boss Prado Foundation

This editorial is the opinion of Morgan Hill Life

Sandra Madriles, nutrition coordinator for the Senior Cafe, serves barbecue ribs at the Halloween-themed lunch several years ago. File photo Morgan Hill Life

When COVID-19 forced the closing of the Morgan Hill Senior Center in March 2020, the cooking staff determined they would make sure older men and women in the South Valley would not go hungry.

Sandra Madriles, senior nutrition coordinator, has served as the face of the 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 how to make it work. And they had to double the 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. “We found ways to do it . . . We had to change everything.”

That was 26 months ago. There was a spirit of joy May 5 when the Morgan Hill’s Senior Center at the Centennial Recreation Center opened again for in-person dining. The menu was Cinco De Mayo-themed: tacos, frijoles and churros for dessert. There were plenty of smiles on the faces of seniors waiting for the hot food to be served — about 120 meals were in Morgan Hill and another 110 in Gilroy.

The Mt. Madonna YMCA runs the Senior Center. It has a few weeks left on its annual campaign to raise money to keep the facility open and serving nutritious meals to seniors — as well as providing educational programs for local youth. It’s about $4,000 short of this year’s goal of $100,000. Major contributors include a $10,000 donation from the Edward Boss Prado Foundation, but donations by generous individuals make up the bulk of the funds. We encourage residents to help the cause by going to www.ymcasv.org/locations/mt-madonna-ymca and giving what they can afford.

We especially want to put a spotlight on the dedicated kitchen staff and other Y workers who gave of their time during the pandemic to make sure no senior in the South Valley would go hungry.

They are: Sandra Madriles, nutrition coordinator; Ingrid Essary; Alma Ramos; and Alicia Avila. Debbie Vasquez, recreation supervisor, and Leo Khooshabeh, community and family program director, also played roles in making sure seniors were fed.

“I’m so proud of the senior nutrition team,” said Andrea Nicollete, executive director of the Mt. Madonna Y. “They’ve worked so hard to make sure things stayed as normal as possible for seniors during COVID. They’re a huge pride point for me. They’re amazing. And I don’t say that lightly.”

We agree. Let’s support the Y’s efforts feeding our local seniors.