SAN LUIS VALLEY — Due to a funding shortage, South–Central Colorado Seniors will reduce the lunch program provided to seniors throughout the San Luis Valley from five days a week to four days. 

The group provides a variety of senior services, including lunch delivery home and congregate meals at nine locations throughout the Valley. 

Monica Wolfe, the group's executive director, told the Valley Courier that lunch will not be provided on Thursday for both in-home delivery and communal gathering places. The cut on Thursday will begin on Nov. 21 and run through March 6. 

Wolfe said that funding from the USDA for the program had decreased in the past several years from about $70,000 to $80,000 annually to $17,000 and may be zero this year.  

In Alamosa, the meals at the Alamosa Senior Center will continue through the donations of community members. Those receiving home delivery on Wednesday will also receive a lunch for Thursday, which will be delivered with the Wednesday lunch, thanks to the collective efforts of volunteers. 

According to the National Council on Aging, seven million older Americans face food insecurity, and nutrition programs such as lunches play a crucial role in reducing that number. These meals not only provide essential nutrition but also serve as a vital social platform for seniors. 

According to the council, several programs, such as home delivery lunches, have an average wait list of three months. For the 2024 Fiscal Year, federal funding for the Older Americans Act Nutrition Program was reduced by .8%, or $8 million. 

The nutrition programs where seniors congregate for lunch also have the mental health benefits of reducing isolation and loneliness. A study issued earlier this month by the WellSky Foundation found that meal delivery programs significantly reduce senior hospitalizations by 93%, and 61% of respondents reported that the meals helped reduce feelings of social isolation. 

On Monday, this reporter visited the lunch program at the senior center and found a jovial group of seniors enjoying a lunch of chicken cordon bleu, rice, and green beans, while enjoying community and conservation. 

One Alamosa resident said, "This is as much about the food as it is about the community. The food is good, and the community is great. I like the fact that I can come here and see people; otherwise, I might not have people in my day. 

"There has been a cut, that is the big deal. Thursday is being cut to make the budget work. What is really cool is that we have come together and pay $5 and we are going to make our meals. We are making it happen, even if the government isn't. This is a grassroots thing.” 

"I've been coming here every day for about eight years. It is like having my own chef. I just walk over from home. We are hopeful to fill the gap of the lack of funds from South Central. I think we can get enough donations to keep things going. We need all the help we can get; we are bound and determined. We are going to take care of our people; they are going to get fed five times a week," said Charles Miller of Alamosa. 

Roxanne Klahn of Alamosa is a regular at the lunch and offered, "They make a very nutritious lunch regardless of what you can pay." Regarding the possibility of a cut to the program, Klahn said, "Seniors don't like things like that." 

Currently, South–Central Colorado Seniors plans on cutting the service on Thursday to the Tri-County Senior Center in Monte Vista, Pioneer United Church in Del Norte, Saguache DSS Building, Antonito Senior Center, Northeasterners Senior Center in La Jara, Costilla County Senior Center in San Luis, and the Center Housing Authority. The lunch service in Crestone and Blanca-Fort Garland were unaffected and will continue to serve lunch on Thursday. 

To make a donation or to place a lunch reservation, call 719-589-2553, or for donations only, call 719-589-3277.