Meals on Wheels is calling for help delivering life-sustaining food and visits to Rockdale's home-bound elderly population. 

The program is running critically low on volunteers to take nutritious, prepared meals to senior citizens in the city and county. 

Recreation and Maintainance Department Director Jackie Lunsford said the volunteer force was down about a third of what it normally is, due to summer ending and volunteers moving away or going back to school.

The program needs about 20 drivers to deliver routes once a week or twice a month, according to volunteer director Melissa Pugh.

Volunteers need to have their own transportation and gas and the trips can be done within a lunch break but may last anywhere from 30 minutes to two hours, depending on weather and traffic. The food is prepared ahead of time and only needs to be delivered from the Olivia Haydel Senior Center on Dogwood Drive to the residents within 15 or 20 miles.

The meals keep more than 70 senior citizens in need from going hungry.

"For most of these homebound seniors, the volunteer is usually the only people they see and usually the only hot meal they get per day," she said.

For more information, contact Melissa Pugh at melissa.pugh@rockdalecounty.org or call 770-278-7230.