For the last 33 years, Shirley Maxey has worked at the senior nutrition program in the old Douglass School cafeteria.

The program has changed a lot — the facility is now the fellowship hall for Rayfield Baptist Church, 601 Indianapolis St., and was recently remodeled for the nutrition program with a grant from the City of Muskogee Foundation.

Seniors have come and gone, Maxey said. She’s watched friendships develop and some couples that met at the center have married.

The latest change came about when the announcement was made that the center was not going to serve meals on Fridays anymore because of a $7.4 million cut in senior nutrition programs nationwide.

That is one change that was not acceptable to the church’s pastor, the Rev. Leroy Walker.

He did not like the prospect of some program participants going Friday through Sunday without a hot, nutritious meal and others possibly not getting out of their homes for three days, he said.

So, he started looking for a way to prevent it.

The cut to the program here amounted to about $160,000 for the eight months remaining in the fiscal year, said James Ezell, accountant for Muskogee County Community Action Foundation, which operates the nutrition programs at 19 sites in Muskogee, Wagoner, McIntosh and Okmulgee counties. Plus, the program prepares hot meals for delivery to shut-ins. In the four counties, the program was cut $1.5 million.

Ezell said the cuts were expected, and MCCAF began trimming its costs several months ago. There was nothing else left to cut, except the number of days of service.

The nutrition program at Rayfield serves about 60 people per day.

“It’s more than just about food,” Walker said. “It’s also about fellowship. Several of the men have told me that if it weren’t for this program, they would have no place to get out of the house for.”

Lunch at the center isn’t served until noon, but program participants come as early as 9 a.m. to play dominoes or cards or just to visit.

What worried Walker most about the cuts was that many of the seniors would have three consecutive days without a hot, nutritious meal.

So he set about asking for funds from his and other churches to keep the center open — and serving meals — five days a week.

He already has raised enough money to keep the program going for three months, he said. His church has pledged enough money for one month, and New Jerusalem and Shiloh churches also have pledged to help.

The Muskogee Ministerial Alliance has agreed to donate the offering collected at Tuesday night’s Community Thanksgiving Service will be donated to the program, Walker said.

Employees of the Muskogee County Department of Human Services have decided to forego having their annual Christmas dinner and instead are donating the money to the nutrition program, he said.

Ezell said Muskogee is one of the only nutrition programs being kept open in the MCCAF district. One at Yorkshire Village at Wagoner will serve a potluck dinner brought by participants on Fridays.

Other sites, including the one at Fort Gibson, will be open, but no meal will be served on Fridays, he said.

You can help

If you want to contribute funds to keep the Muskogee Senior Nutrition Program open five days a week, send a check to the program, in care of Muskogee County Community Action, P.O. Box 647, Muskogee, OK 74402.