Nominator Comments:
Guardians of the Community
New Dawn Meals on Wheels/A Better Bite Kitchen, under the direction of Claire Turpin, has been instrumental in making vulnerable seniors across CBRM have access to healthy, nutritious meals. Claire and her team led the charge in the group implementing safety measures for food handling and no-contact food delivery while complying with social distancing measures. They quickly updated policies and procedures to ensure they were keeping our most vulnerable community members safe, in their homes. They’ve seen an increased need due to COVID-19 and they have responded in a strong way to keep up with demand. Claire continually ensures her employees are kept safe, while they connect our most vulnerable community members to resources. They also implemented a “Telephone Tree” phone check-in program to maintain contact with their Meals on Wheels clients and ensure their wellness during the times of complete lock-down and isolation. The team at New Dawn doesn’t hesitate to implement a program if they identify a need. The last two holiday seasons, they hosted barrier-free Christmas markets, to allow our most vulnerable community members the opportunity to select items for free in a stigma-free environment, again complying with ever-changing COVID-19 restrictions. The market provided children’s gifts, personal care items, and a grocery hamper.