CITYMEALS ON WHEELS PROVIDES MORE THAN 16,000 THANKSGIVING MEALS TO HOMEBOUND OLDER NEW YORKERS

Volunteers Spent Thanksgiving Morning Delivering Meals and Checking in on Older Neighbors in Need

(November 27, 2025 - New York, NY) - Citymeals on Wheels provided more than 16,000 festive Thanksgiving meals this holiday to older New Yorkers across the five boroughs. Working in partnership with community-based organizations throughout the city, Citymeals volunteers delivered meals to recipients' doors and served meals at older adult centers for those able to get out. Volunteers also made 500 special holiday calls to older New Yorkers who would otherwise spend the day alone.

“Citymeals on Wheels and our volunteers stepped up to deliver over 16,000 Thanksgiving meals this year to our older neighbors,” said Citymeals CEO Beth Shapiro. “Following cuts and changes to SNAP and rising food insecurity across the city, it is more important than ever to support older New Yorkers in need this holiday season. For our recipients, who live on fixed incomes and are often isolated in their homes, our deliveries are more than just a meal; they’re an essential connection and a reminder that they’re remembered this holiday season. This Thanksgiving, I am proud to see Citymeals continue to move forward in our goal of ending elder hunger by 2040.”

One in 10 New Yorkers over 60 is food insecure – lacking reliable access to adequate food. Hunger is an even greater risk for those who are homebound, with 40% of Citymeals recipients who cannot shop or cook for themselves facing food insecurity. Among Citymeals’ recipients:

• The average age of Citymeals recipients is 87 years old, and over 500 have lived for at least a century.
• Citymeals’ original research found that half of New Yorkers who rely on the city’s home-delivered meal program have no family or friends to help provide daily meals, the majority live alone, 40% rarely leave their homes.
• Of Citymeals recipients surveyed, more than half are food insecure, and 65% are living on less than $15,000 a year.