HOUGHTON-HANCOCK, Mich. (WZMQ) – For years, daily meals have been supplied to seniors around the Copper Country through the Copper Shores’ Meals on Wheels program. In the area, one of five residents are over 65 years old, with many in demand of access to the necessary services, not just for food, but also the personal connection.
Meals on Wheels driver Conor Lydon has been working for Copper Shores for over 12 years. He says the best part of his job is just seeing how happy everyone is to receive their meals each day.
On average, over 300 seniors are served in the region each day, which has led to the program reaching capacity. This has left many residents in rural areas waiting months for a spot in its daily routes.
“You can’t keep serving endlessly without the proper funding to support that,” said Kathleen Harter, the Program Director for Copper Shores’ Meals on Wheels Program. “There are many that are rural. We don’t have a lot of public transportation, and we don’t have grocery stores everywhere.”
With these constraints, there is a large need for more help from the area. Both Houghton and Keweenaw counties are served by the Meals on Wheels program — two of only five counties in Michigan without a millage to support elder nutrition services.
In August, the ‘2025 Elder Nutrition Millage Proposal‘ will be voted on for more funding throughout Houghton County, hoping to expand the program’s possible lengths and eliminate that long waiting list.
“This millage is just for Houghton County. What we would like to do is prove our success that we’re able to use the funds responsibly and transparently,” said Harter. “Then after four years, if we’ve proven successful, go for a millage in Keweenaw County.”
The millage would annually cost only about $40 per Houghton County resident. Until the vote on August 5, numerous learning sessions will take place to inform the public about the millage. The schedule for those meetings can be found here.
