A hot meal delivers more than food

By LILLIAN PALMER

Staff Writer

Every weekday morning, just before 11, 57 year-old volunteer Alphonso Gardea, or Poncho as many know him, makes his way to Golden Hour Senior Center.

He packs up the trunk of his car with a dozen or so freshly-made meals from the center and delivers the hot meals to each recipient on his route.

Thursday is his busiest day of the week, delivering about 20 meals.

"I try to hurry to get every meal delivered hot," Gardea said. "It's hard on long routes like this."

Gardea's familiar knock on the door and friendly hello is something meal recipients look forward to each day. "That's my buddy," "my good friend," recipients say about Gardea. Gardea walks in the house, meal in hand, a smile on his face and greets each person.

"Anything good today," meal recipient Troy Lowseth asked.

Lowseth guesses what his meal could be. The day's meal was Salisbury steak, mashed potatoes with gravy, peas and carrots, salad, fruit cocktail, and a dessert roll.

Lowseth smiles in agreement. The two converse in playful banter for a minute before Gardea makes his way out the door and onto his next delivery.

"It's 65 today, Troy," Gardea said as he walked out the door.

"Oh, that's beautiful," Lowseth replied.

Each recipient is happy to see Gardea, his company and conversation appreciated as much as the meal he delivers to them.

"All they want is an ear. They just want someone to talk to, you gotta take the time to talk," Gardea said. "I could be the only person they see all day."

Many of the home-delivered meals go to seniors who are home bound or cannot cook for themselves. Gardea delivers meals to seniors and some non-seniors, as well as those who have difficulties caring for themselves.

"My husband is just about bed ridden, so it's go, go, go," recipient Gloria Reyes said.

The meals help her care for husband as well as herself.

"People thank me for coming into their home and bringing them meals, but in all reality I should be thanking them for helping me find my purpose," Gardea said.

Gardea started delivering meals about 14 years ago. Before delivering meals, his volunteering started at the soup kitchen. His parents were regular volunteers at the soup kitchen in Green River. One fateful day in 1995, something came up and Gardea's parents couldn't make it to the soup kitchen. Gardea's mother Rose Gardea told him they needed him at the soup kitchen.

"I didn't want to do it," he said.

A reluctant Gardea made his way down to the soup kitchen that day. Little did he realize, helping others would help him as well.

"It saved me," Gardea said with tears in his eyes. "I was in a bad depression. It got me out of my house."

"I knew my life was going to change and it did," he said.

"It's an awarding job, it makes you feel good," his mother Rose said.

Volunteering is his calling. Delivering the meals helps Gardea, just as they help those he delivers to.

"It was a miracle in disguise," Rose said.