In 1969 a small but dedicated group of community members formed the Cooma Meals on Wheels service and 40 years later some founding committee members and volunteers still donate their time, along with a host of new faces.

On Tuesday an anniversary luncheon was held at the Cooma Country and Bowling Club for volunteers and all those involved in Meals on Wheels over the past four decades. NSW Meals on Wheels Association representative Pat Irving travelled from Bega to attend the lunch and in her talk emphasised the role volunteers play in the meal delivery service.

“Volunteers are very important, without them the service would not survive,” she said.

Yesterday Home and Community Care (HACC) marked 21 years in Cooma, during which time the group has coordinated two hostels, a nursing home, community transport, meals on wheels, home care and plenty of support.

HACC chairperson Dort Tynan said the group has undergone massive growth in that time.

“It was a very busy time in the late 80s and we only had home care and the hospital,” she said.

Mrs Tynan said that situation has since changed to include a host of new services such as community transport.

“I think we are very lucky now, how would the elderly get around without a service like community transport for instance?” she said.

HACC is a very useful because Cooma has a large elderly population.

“A lot of people who worked on the Snowy Scheme who stayed in Cooma are now coming to an age where they will benefit from the sort of services HACC provides,” Mrs Tynan said.

Today HACC has paid coordinators in different areas. Barbara Aitkenhead runs meals on wheels, Sue Gorringe-Lupton looks after the Contact Centre and Lordona Shingles home support.