CANTON, Ohio — A delivery from Meals on Wheels of Northeast Ohio to a Perry Township home on Tuesday was a welcome site to 67-year-old Mike Means.
"It's a blessing. I truly appreciate it," Means said.
Means is a cancer survivor. He went through chemotherapy and radiation. He has been cancer-free for two years.
"I went from 234 pounds. I'd bench press 450 pounds. After chemo/radiation, I was 115 pounds. I couldn't lift a gallon of milk," he said.
Means, who proudly served in the U.S. Army, said receiving the meals means a lot to him, especially with the hot and humid weather suffocating Northeast Ohio this week.
"I stay indoors. I don't go outside much in the heat because I'm in heart failure and I don't think that would mix well."
Even with the sun beating down, temperatures rising, and the uncomfortable hoovering humidity, it didn't dissuade Nora Logsdon from making deliveries.
She visited mostly seniors who can be vulnerable to the heat.
That included 76-year-old Sandy McGraw from Canton.
"It's a rough one and I have heart failure, so I have a lot of problems there. I stay in the house," McGraw said.
Logsdon said the Meals on Wheels routes are taking a little longer this week so that volunteers and employees can double-check that seniors are drinking enough water, their homes are cool enough, and they're feeling okay.
The organization has about 50 routes in several counties, including Stark, Summit, Wayne and Portage.
"If we feel that anybody's home is too hot— if they need assistance we escalate that up. We have emergency contacts on all of our clients," Logsdon said.
She stressed that the agency is always there for clients, whether it's frigid cold or brutally hot.
"We say we we're more than a meal— and that volunteers checking on the clients every day— for many of them the families can't be there every day, so we're the eyes and ears for the family."
McGraw said she's very grateful for the deliveries and the kindness of the drivers.
"It means a lot, so I think it's helpful for older people," McGraw said.
Logsdon urged others outside of Meals on Wheels to do their part to check on people during the hot weather.
"You don't need to work for Meals on Wheels. This is a good time if you don't know your neighbor to meet them and make sure they're okay."
