http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/daily/detail/0,1136,24500000000130188,00.html

"Millennium meals get some of South Florida's seniors Y2K ready"

By DIANE C. LADE, Sun-Sentinel Web-posted: 8:01 p.m. Nov. 12, 1999

"Estelle Cedar is 83 and Y2K compliant. She wont be hungry even if there is a turn-of-the-century catastrophe, thanks to a small stash of canned goods and nonperishable food."

"Cedar is one of 12,600 Florida seniors who will receive a packet of emergency rations at the government-sponsored hot lunch sites they attend. The millenium meals were an unexpected offshoot of a new program being tested by the Florida Department of Elder Affairs. Instead of professional catering companies, developmentally disabled adults assemble the hurricane preparedness food packages typically given to seniors by the state." "Rather than wait for the next hurricane season, the department decided Y2K was a worthy trial cataclysm." I dont think there is going to be a problem, but we wanted to have something on hand (for seniors) just in case, said Susan Tucker, the departments director for contracts and fiscal management."

"The packages contain enough food for five meals and include hot chocolate, spaghetti and chili  which will have to be eaten cold out of the can if there is a Y2K electrical meltdown. The food will be home delivered or distributed in early December and are good for six months."

"Cedar, who eats lunch twice a week at the Southeast Focal Point Senior Center in Hollywood, was a little surprised, but certainly not overwhelmed, when she heard of the preparations. Potential chaos at centurys end is not high on her worry list." Heck, at my age I might not even make it to Y2K, she said. Why are they giving it to us anyway? But Ill eat it. After Hurricane Irene passed, she finished off the box of hurricane food the program gives to all seniors in June."

"The Y2K meals were allocated according to senior population, with Broward County receiving 1,400 packages and the five-county area agency district including Palm Beach County getting 1,561." "The Human Services Network, which manages Browards meals programs, supplemented the boxes with additional emergency food so all 3,000 seniors going to hot lunch programs as well as getting home-delivered meals could be Y2K ready."

"The millennium meals were a brainstorm of an area agency on aging based in Gainesville, which suggested their local Association of Retarded Citizens workshops could make emergency packages for about half the cost of the local caterers. The state spent $89,200 to test the idea."

"If the department decides to have developmentally disabled adults put together the packages for next hurricane season, Tucker said, local disabled programs probably would be used instead to alleviate shipping problems." "Staff Writer Diane Lade can be reached at 954-356-4834 or at dlade@sun-sentinel.com."

-- Deb M. (vmcclell@columbus.rr.com), November 15, 1999