Free meal kits offered to Richland County seniors during coronavirus crisis
*Updated with new locations and additional information on March 31
In the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, Senior Resources is offering five free meals per week to all seniors living in Richland County.
The Emergency Senior Nutrition Meal Distribution plan will run every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
In order to be eligible, people must be at least 60 years old and be a Richland County resident. They must also have a state-issued ID and provide their name, address and phone number at pickup. People taking meals to seniors can also make the pickup.
Each meal pack will contain five meals for the week. Individuals will be limited to one pack per week.
The packs will be distributed at 12 locations using a drive-thru system. Meals can be picked up from 10:30 a.m. to 12 p.m., with a limit of two packs per car.
In a press release, Senior Resources said as a reminder due to high demand that all meals are served on a first-come, first-served basis. Once a locations is out of meals for the day, it will close. Cars can begin to line up before 10:30 a.m. and have their information taken, but no meals will be distributed until 10:30 a.m.
On Mondays, meals will be distributed at:
— Richland Library Edgewood, 2101 Oak St, Columbia, SC 29204
— Richland Library St Andrews, 2916 Broad River Rd, Columbia, SC 29210
— Richland Library Southeast, 7421 Garners Ferry Road, Columbia, SC 29209
— Hopkins Park, 150 Hopkins Park Road, Hopkins, SC 29061
On Wednesdays, meals will be distributed at:
— Trinity United Methodist Church, 90 Boney Rd, Blythewood, SC 29016
— Lutheran Seminary/Lenoir-Rhyne Univ., 1100 Wildewood Ave, Columbia, SC 29203
— Dent Middle School, 2721 Decker Blvd, Columbia, SC 29206
— Richland Library Eastover, 608 Main St, Eastover, SC 29044
On Fridays, meals will be distributed at:
— Richland Library Ballentine, 1200 Dutch Fork Rd, Irmo, SC 29063
— Richland Library Sandhills, 763 Fashion Dr, Columbia, SC 29229
— Richland Library Cooper, 5317 North Trenholm Rd, Columbia, SC 29206
— Gasden Community Center, 1668 S Goodwin Cir, Gadsden, SC 29052
There are nearly 300 reported cases of COVID-19 in South Carolina and more than 45,000 nationally. All five deaths in South Carolina occurred among the elderly with underlying medical conditions, and health experts have warned senior citizens to be especially vigilant about the virus, warning of more serious complications in those 65 years or older.
As a result, many grocery store chains have introduced special shopping times, usually before opening, solely for seniors or those most vulnerable to the virus. Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott also said last week that his department had already had several reported scams preying on senior citizens reported and pledged to deploy his officers to check up on those confined to their homes.
This story was originally published March 24, 2020 at 1:55 PM.
