Hundreds of Seminole County seniors woke up to a Christmas surprise of warm meals and gifts, brought to their doorstep by over 100 volunteers as part of the annual Meals on Wheels Adopt-A-Senior campaign.
Stationed from the Meals on Wheels headquarters in Sanford, 130 volunteers rounded up prepared meals and donated gifts into their cars to spread out across the county and deliver them to homebound seniors.
Donated gifts included packages with items like candy, cookies, candles, games, socks, toys and other stocking stuffer items.
Meals on Wheels Executive Director Michael McKee said several volunteers have delivered meals and gifts through the Adopt-A-Senior program for decades, including one family who has made it an annual tradition every Christmas morning for 31 years.
Prepared meals that will be delivered by Meals on Wheels Adopt-A-Senior volunteers to Seminole County senior citizens, on Thursday, December 25, 2025. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/Orlando Sentinel)
“I used to work with Meals on Wheels, I started with my kids, and now I’m doing it with my grandkids,” Sanford resident Windia Gibson said.
Gibson and 15 members of her family came out to participate in the annual event, bringing smiles and helping hands to gather meals and gifts into their traveling caravan.
The tradition extends from Gibson down to the youngest member of the family, 3-year-old E’lanii Manley, who has never known a Christmas without volunteering with Meals on Wheels.
Gibson and others said Manley has played a part in the Adopt-A-Senior campaign since she was a newborn and often brings as many smiles to the seniors as her family brings gifts.
The Gibson Family poses for a photo, before going to deliver Meals on Wheels and Christmas gifts to Seminole County senior citizens as part of the Adopt-A-Senior program, on Thursday, December 25, 2025. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/Orlando Sentinel)
“I love going into the different homes because you’re the first person they see on Christmas,” Gibson said. “They also love seeing the kids; it just brightens up their day.”
McKee said the Meals on Wheels in Sanford helps finance its operation by running a catering business, Top Hat Catering. At its peak, McKee said, the kitchen at their location is capable of producing thousands of meals a day.
While Meals on Wheels collectively donates tens of thousands of meals each year, McKee said the Adopt-A-Senior campaign with Meals on Wheels is distinct in providing a more hands-on experience than their other services.
“It’s such a unique volunteer experience where you’re not just moving around boxes, and you’re on the front lines,” he said. “You go out and have this little adventure, and you go in areas maybe you wouldn’t go in otherwise. It’s a very powerful experience.”
Beyond delivering meals to seniors, McKee highlighted other programs Meals on Wheels runs to help serve the community.
Left to Right, Lee Richardson hands a basket to Kaleem Richardson, as the Gibson family picks up Christmas gifts and meals they will deliver to Seminole County senior citizens for the Meals on Wheels Adopt-A-Senior program, on Thursday, December 25, 2025. This has been a tradition in the Gibson family for 31 years. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/Orlando Sentinel)
“We provide transportation, we have a couple of dining sites in Seminole County, and we’ve sent homemakers in the homes to clean,” he said. “We even pay for hundreds of thousands of dollars in electric bills we pay for low-income seniors. This is a whole operation.”
McKee said his volunteers at Meals on Wheels — like Windia Gibson and her family — are “saints” and that they always go out of their way to assist in serving others before themselves. Their service, he said, is what makes their Adopt-A-Senior campaign a successful program each year.
“Everybody else does a big Thanksgiving thing and, of course, we do Thanksgiving services too,” McKee said. “But Christmas is our thing. We feel like we can own that.”
Contact me at twilkins@orlandosentinel.com or 407-754-4980.
