The Houghton County Courthouse is seen in this photo. The county board has been approached regarding approving a millage request for the Meals on Wheels program, operated by Copper Shores Community Health Foundation. (Ben Garbacz/Daily Mining Gazette)

HOUGHTON — The Copper Shores Community Health Foundation requested a millage for the Copper Country Senior Meals Program, or Meals on Wheels, on the August ballot before the Houghton County Board of Commissioners during its meeting on March 11. The request for one mill will provide more funding for the program which delivers food to around 300 seniors in Houghton and Keweenaw Counties.

The Meals on Wheels program has existed in the area for about 30 years which uses eight routes. A survey conducted by the organization showed that one in four seniors that the meal provided to them is the only meal that they receive and 24 percent of recipients say that without the program that they would could not eat everyday.

Another question on the survey reveals that 59 percent of the recipients have their only social interaction through the program while conversing with the delivery drivers and 49 percent said that the interaction helps ease loneliness. 150 of the 300 recipients participated in the survey.

Five counties in Michigan do not have elder nutrition millage, Houghton and Keweenaw Counties among them.

“We do have additional monies that do support through the through UPCAP, but the percentage of support for our elder nutrition program, despite what the rhetoric in the language says, that everybody’s eligible and everybody has a right to this meal,” said Copper Shores Community Health Foundation Executive Director Kevin Store.

“Between the government support and the participant contributions, it’s actually only covering about 32 to 33 percent of what it takes to actually provide that meal. To put that into real numbers, and to take that 300 people, that’s in excess of 90,000 meals a year that we’re providing, and the first quarter of our contract this year, the foundation underwrote that program for about 210 $214,000 because we’re not willing to walk away from that which serves our elder community.”

Store went on to explain that if the voters decided to affirm the millage that the county would act as a tax letting entity that collects and redistributes the tax revenues to the program.

The board had concerns with taking action to put the millage on the ballot, mostly considering the other initiatives on the August ballot regarding other pressing matters.

Houghton County Board Chairman Tom Tikkanen said the request puts Houghton County and its residents at a disadvantage since the upcoming ballot will have the several items including the jail issue, which has failed state inspections for several years.

“We’re asking so much of the voters, the property owners of Houghton County,” Tikkanen explained.

“I’m not saying this to upset people on this heartfelt [issue] as the next person from an extended family. I understand the conditions that we have.”

Tikkanen was also concerned that other avenues are considered as sources of the funding needed for the program and said the board needs to know if the funds are needed to keep the program in existence or to expand it.

He did say he understands and supports the mission of the Meals on Wheels program, but the county is subject at any time to a lawsuit because of the conditions of the jail. “We’re just stating black and white facts here,” he said.

“We do have the medical care facility renewal coming up in August as well, and that’s strongly supported by the taxpayers in Houghton County, and has been for many years now.”

“I just want to throw those cautions out there and understand that this is a very, very significant and serious decision that we’re being asked to make here.”

The issue has been tabled until the April board meeting.