The elderly poor make up a rapidly growing percentage of New York City’s population. Often frail, alone and with limited mobility, they’re largely invisible to others. But in 1981, food critic Gael Greene, chef James Beard and cookbook author Barbara Kafka read an article about them and were moved to action. After learning that many of these people had nothing to eat on weekends and holidays, they founded a nonprofit called Citymeals-on-Wheels to address the issue. And they put out the call to friends like Ira Riklis to lend their support.
After joining into a unique partnership with the New York City Department for the Aging, they quickly raised $35,000 and provided a Christmas dinner for 6,000 elderly poor. They hoped that the need might ease over time, but instead it has grown year by year as the city’s population has grown older. In a recent year, the group raised nearly $17.5 million. And thanks to the continuing support of people like Ira Riklis, every penny of that money went to providing meals—some 2.5 million—and human contact for this underserved group of elders.