MCH Meals on Wheels celebrated and thanked its supporters and volunteers Nov. 14 at the David Scriven Crowley Gallery.

MCH Meals on Wheels is tremendously grateful for the enthusiastic support from people in the community who voted for Meals on Wheels to win the $100,000 award from the Pop the Cause event, sponsored by Bettina Doulton of Cellar Door Winery and Lani Stiles of Megunticook Market. The many volunteers who donated their time to deliver meals and all the Rockland businesses that hung the plates sharing recipients' stories of how the program helps them were recognized at the event.

Lee Karker, the executive director, announced that $80,000 of this award will be used to expand our kitchen on Summer Street in Rockland, where meals are made from scratch each day. For the last three years, MCH Meals on Wheels has seen demand increase by 30 percent. The population of Knox County is growing older faster than almost any other county in Maine, which has the oldest population in the U.S. The remaining $20,000 will be used for operating costs.

Volunteers are an essential part of Meals on Wheels — we could not operate the program without them. On the road five days a week, delivering almost 130 meals across Knox County, volunteer drivers take time to chat, change a lightbulb and make seniors feel less isolated and alone.

Special thanks go to David Scriven Crowley for the use of his art gallery, and to Wallace Tents for the donation of the flat screen television.