Earlier this year, we told you how TECO team members love volunteering to help Meals on Wheels deliver much-needed food to elderly or disabled residents in the community – seeing this effort as a sort of scavenger hunt for the soul. And along the way to helping ensure people simply have the basic necessity of food on their tables, we found something else: the nonprofit’s 2018 Adopt-a-Route Partner of the Year Award.
“It was an honor to present TECO with the 2018 ‘Adopt-A-Route of the Year’ Award at our Volunteer Appreciation Banquet earlier this month!” said Steve King, executive director with Meals on Wheels Tampa. “TECO has been a wonderful partner in our mission at Meals on Wheels of Tampa – and their kindness, dedication and commitment serve as a model for all businesses and organizations in terms of what it means to truly give back to the community.”
He added, “Most importantly, the TECO Adopt-A-Route makes a significant difference in the lives of the homebound and seniors served everyday by Meals on Wheels! Thank you, TECO, for your example and congratulations on being named the Meals on Wheels ‘Adopt-A-Route of the Year’ partner!”
Marshall Tucker, manager of Corporate Business Development at TECO and a Meals on Wheels Tampa board member, said it’s been no surprise – but heartening nonetheless – to see TECO team members stepping up to help those in need.
“Being a TECO team member is about more than bringing safe, reliable electricity and natural gas to the community – and yet like those foundational needs, basic food security can be easy to take for granted,” he said. “But our work with Meals on Wheels speaks to a special connection we have with the communities we serve because we live here too, in some cases with elderly parents, and it’s too easy to imagine people we love facing the fear of not knowing how they’ll get their next meal.”
Needs are still great – turn the key and make a difference with us!
As America gets older and needs among its elderly population rise, programs like Meals on Wheels are more important than ever – and sadly, struggling to get to everyone who needs help. That’s where people like you can join TECO’s volunteers in this effort. The commitment is small compared to the lifeline you provide for someone who may live in your own neighborhood. (You just might have a lot of fun exploring the community too while receiving smiles and gratitude in return!)
Meanwhile, TECO is committed to doing our part to strengthening the communities we serve. This goes beyond the great customer service, safety and reliability we strive to offer. It goes beyond some of the lowest rates for power in Florida, and programs to help you save in numerous ways. It includes compassion for those in need, and for making a difference to the tune of nearly 30,000 hours we donate in the community annually.
It includes our people out there on days like today, donating time to Meals on Wheels. You won’t see these TECO team members wearing hard hats or driving line trucks. You may not notice them at all. But for people who need food, these volunteers – and all those like them at Meals on Wheels – are among those they long to see more than anyone else in the world.
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