Seniors can grab a bite and socialize at the Oasis

Tom Forquer

Finally, a place where one can get a meal that is both inexpensive

and healthy. The only catch is you have to be 60 years old or related

to someone who is.

The Oasis Senior Center lunch program provides in-house and

delivered meals Monday through Friday from 11:45 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.

for the suggested donation of $3.

Diners have a choice between a hot, cold or salad meal. Tuesday’s

hot lunch consisted of taco salad, beans, rice and flan. Those who

opted for the cold meal got a chicken sandwich, cookie and side

salad. All meals come with juice and milk.

“For the price we pay, they are pretty good,” said Adele Tingey of

Newport Beach, adding that “especially when you don’t have to cook it

yourself.”

Aside from furnishing sustenance that some seniors would be

unwilling or unable to cook, the round-table meals also provide a

reason for them to congregate.

“It’s social. A lot of them can get lonely. They get to talk about

their interests,” said program coordinator Berenice Barajas.

“Usually I can meet people at the tables, that’s the nice part,”

said Kristina Dendinger, at Oasis Tuesday for a ceramics workshop.

Though the suggested donation helps cover the cost of the food, it

is also subsidized by the Older Americans Act of 1965 and the United

States Department of Agriculture, said Oasis director Celeste

Jardine-Haug.

That federal assistance then makes it to Oasis by way of the

nonprofit South County Senior Services funded by the Orange County

Office of Aging Jardine-Haug said. The pre-prepared food is then

purchased from Langlois catering.

Volunteers are another important factor in getting the affordable

food served.

Victor Caliva of Newport Beach, who has been involved at Oasis for

25 years, helps serve food on Tuesdays and Fridays.

“It’s a good thing to do and it gives you the feeling that you are

contributing to someone’s benefit,” Caliva said.

The food is also delivered to the homes of seniors who are unable

to make it to Oasis for lunch. Better known as Meals on Wheels, the

program uses the help of volunteers to deliver a package of

breakfast, lunch and dinner for the price of $5.