Meals on Wheels of Palmerton recently honored its volunteers at a picnic at the Palmerton Memorial Park pavilion.

Darlene Nothstein, the president of the organization's board of directors, said, "These people are out there week after week in the weather and cold. God bless them."Meals and Wheels has 25 volunteers who deliver to 20 people throughout Palmerton, Little Gap and Aquashicola, said Richard Bowman, the volunteer coordinator. He said he could really use substitute drivers. Sometimes things come up and a driver can't make it, he said. That's when substitutes are vital."Many of my drivers are pretty elderly themselves," Bowman said.Both Bowman and Nothstein started volunteering with the organization delivering meals to the homebound. Both were invited to help out by other volunteers.Nothstein's involvement with the board came from an invitation. She said then-president Irene Shinsec told her, "It's only three meetings a year." It's turned out to be a little bit more of a commitment than that, but it's OK with Nothstein."I knew it was a good program from driving for them," she said. "I've always been in finance and business, so it was nice to give back in that role."Nothstein said it takes $12,000 every year to keep the program running, and none of the money comes from the government."I can't say enough about the people, churches and businesses in the Palmerton area," she said. "They come through all the time for us."Jonathan Siller, assistant treasurer on the Meals on Wheels Board of Directors, was one of the first substitute drivers. His mother, Carolyn "Peg" Siller, was one of the founders, and it was for her that he helped out.He said they started Meals on Wheels on a trial basis, because they saw a need."They were only going to do it for a couple weeks," he said. That was in 1972.John Porambo and his wife Marge have been volunteering for Meals on Wheels since 1999."We get a lot of satisfaction out of it," he said. "You might be the only person that person sees that day.""It's a shame you don't have more time to visit with them," Siller said. "But you've got these other people to take to."Porambo said one little old lady said to him, "Please come to visit me. No one comes to visit me."There are also those who practically greet you at the door with a fork in hand, he joked.Gwen Chimich is a substitute for her neighbor Carol Costenbader and her husband Duane. The three have been volunteering for about two years."They really appreciate it," Chimich said about the folks who receive the meals. "They're all so nice.""You get to meet some really sweet people," Carol Costenbader said.