Meals on Wheels collects shoeboxes filled with gifts for senior clients

The Manatee nonprofit's annual Shoebox Drive and Reception is a can't-miss event at the Lakewood Ranch Elks Club.

By Liz Ramos
| 7:57 p.m. December 3, 2022

Esplanade at Lakewood Ranch's Gwyneth Paget and Sarah King drop off shoeboxes. They are a part of Esplanade at Lakewood Ranch's Crafts for Cause, which donated 150 shoeboxes and $365 to Meals on Wheels Plus of Manatee.

East County
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Lakewood Ranch's Diane and Bob Collom drove up to the entrance of the Lakewood Ranch Elks Lodge Saturday with shoeboxes filled with gifts.

Each of the 13 shoeboxes was wrapped and ready for Meals on Wheels Plus of Manatee's Shoebox Drive and Reception.

"We've donated 13 boxes every year for the past eight years," Diane Collom said. "(Meals on Wheels) helped my parents, and it's a wonderful organization that we had to give back to."

Dozens of people donated hundreds of shoeboxes for the Shoebox Drive at the Lakewood Ranch Elks Lodge. Each shoebox is delivered to a Meals on Wheels Plus of Manatee's senior client.

Esplanade at Lakewood Ranch's Gwyneth Paget and Sarah King, who are a part of the community's Crafts for Cause, said the organization donated 150 shoeboxes, $365, 325 pairs of socks and any extra items that didn't fit in the shoeboxes to Meals on Wheels Plus of Manatee.

"We've done this for at least the past 10 years, and this year we had 50 more shoeboxes than we've ever had," Paget said.

Bradenton's Gini Mitchell, East County's Shawna Cranston and Lakewood Ranch's Christina Ballard greet people and collect shoeboxes.

Lakewood Ranch's Diane Collom and Bob Collom donate 13 shoeboxes. Diane Collom says they have donated 13 shoeboxes to Meals on Wheels Plus of Manatee for the past eight years.

Maddox Towery, 11, and Lou Towery, 13, act as Santa's helpers and organize the shoeboxes in the vans for delivery at the 2022 Shoebox Drive and Reception.

Bradenton's Mary Francis-Schultz and Terry Remijio have fun at the Shoebox Drive and Reception.

Lakewood Ranch's Lori Valari puts a ticket in a bag in hopes of winning a wine basket. Valari says she comes to the Shoebox Drive and Reception every year. "It's so much fun for a great cause," she says.

Concession's Zita Grepling and her husband, Bob Grepling, look at the various raffle prizes. "We wouldn't miss it," Zita Grepling says about the Shoebox Drive and Reception.

Sarasota's Melissa Ferlazzo, a database administrator for Meals on Wheels Plus of Manatee, and Lakewood Ranch's Julianne Niebour sell raffle tickets.

River Club's Carole Sullivan and Del Webb's Carol Meyers work together to get their communities to donate shoeboxes. The communities donated 66 boxes to Meals on Wheels Plus of Manatee's Shoebox Drive.

Silent auction items included a kiddie pool filled with toys, gift cards to Libby's, a massage and foot scrub and Universal Studios day passes.

The Shoebox Drive and Reception includes dozens of raffle prizes.

Lakewood Ranch's Julianne Niebour, Maribeth Phillips, the CEO and president of Meals on Wheels Plus of Manatee, and Myakka City's Tonya Ditty collect shoeboxes.

Lakewood Ranch's Marcia Owens and her husband, Ron Owens, who deliver meals for Meals on Wheels Plus of Manatee, say the Shoebox Drive is a "nice festive event that benefits so many clients."

East County's Lynn Suter sees what's available in the raffle.

Dozens of people enjoy the Meals on Wheels Plus of Manatee shoebox collection at the Lakewood Ranch Elks Lodge.

Maribeth Phillips, the CEO and president of Meals on Wheels Plus of Manatee, and Jackie Barron, the board chair of Meals on Wheels Plus of Manatee, are excited to see how many shoeboxes the nonprofit collected.

author

Liz Ramos

Managing Editor Liz Ramos previously covered education and community for the East County Observer. Before moving to Florida, Liz was an education reporter for the Lynchburg News & Advance in Virginia for two years after graduating from the Missouri School of Journalism.