Luana Dusseault was working on revising the Policies and Procedures bylaw for the Lions Club of Tumbler Ridge, when she discovered that the Meals on Wheels program they were running? Wasn’t actually a Meals on Wheels program.
“I was trying to put a policy together, and I was doing some research to see what Northern Health had,” says Dusseault. “It turns out there is no Meals on Wheels program for Tumbler Ridge.”
While Northern Health offers Meals on Wheels programs elsewhere in the service area, it doesn’t offer it in Tumbler Ridge. “Even the forms say Meals on Wheels, Northern Health, but it’s actually not.”
And, while it seems like Meals on Wheels is just a descriptor for a hot meals program, it is actually an official international organization.
We were using a name we shouldn’t have been using,” says Dusseault. “We were in the wrong. So we decided we needed to change the name.”
Dusseault brought the issue forward to a recent meeting of the Tumbler Ridge Lions Club, and left it with the club members for a month.
“At the same time, we were also looking for a way to honour Grace,” she says. (Grace Walsh was a key member of the Lions Club of Tumbler Ridge who passed away earlier this year.) “My daughter approached me and said, “How about Grace’s Angels?”
Dusseault thought that was perfect. So she brought it to the Lions club. “There were a few other names out there, but none as good as Grace’s Angels. So we voted unanimously to change the name.”
Officially, the new name for the program is ‘Lion Grace’s Angels’.
“Frank [Walsh; Graces husband] approached me and asked if we could put the Lion in front? What better way to honour a beautiful lady in our community who is greatly missed with a tribute to her.
While the name is changing, the service the program offers will be saying the same. Mostly. “We are looking at making some changes,” hints Dusseault, “but I can’t divulge that information just yet.”
At the moment, clients pay $5/meal, with the rest of the costs funded covered by the Lions Club, which is about $2/person/meal.
“We’re going to try and do some cost savings, which means we’re probably going to have to move to one restaurant preparing meals, instead of two or three, which we have been doing.”
Dusseault says that, at the moment, there are ten clients that participate in the program, down from a high of 18. “I’ve lost a few clients this year,” she says. “Some have passed away, some have moved down south.”
The way people get meals is typically by referral. “If you know people that need to get on the program, please reach out. The doctors will sometimes refer people, but I will also go and do an assessment with the person and see what their needs are. Sometimes the doctors will fill out a form for the person, and other times I have people just reach out to me. We do three meals a week, Monday, Wednesday, Friday. I’ve been told by some of the clients that some of the meals are so big, they can actually eat for two days. So I’m really happy to hear that. The feedback has been really good on it.”
This year, Christmas falls on a Wednesday, so New Life Assembly Church is making a Christmas dinner for the clients.
While most of the clients are older seniors, she says there are people who are in their 50s and 60s who are a part of the program, too.
If you or someone you know would benefit from being a part of the Lion Grace’s Angel program, Dusseault can be reached through the Lions club, or send her an email at
luanadusseault@gmail.com
Above photo: Okay, but what does a Christmas Tree have to do with Grace’s Angels? This is a photo of Grace’s tree, which was auctioned off at the recent Chamber Christmas Party, featuring classic ornaments from Grace’s personal collection. Photo provided by Kaila Pack, because I totally forgot to take a picture, even though I was there taking pictures.
Trent is the publisher of Tumbler RidgeLines.
