What has four wheels, ten meals and a lot of LUV?  A car full of Southwest Employees delivering Meals on Wheels, of course! On July 8 under the hot Texas sky, more than 270 Dallas-based Employees loaded up 96 cars and scattered across Dallas County to Share the Spirit and deliver food to people in need.

This wasn’t our first rodeo delivering Meals On Wheels (pard’n the Texas pun). Southwest’s participation in the Dallas Visiting Nurses Association (VNA) Meals on Wheels program dates back seven years when we adopted our very own routes that have been delivered faithfully every week by dozens of Employees over the years. However, this was the first time where all of Southwest’s MOWers, as they are lovingly called around here, gathered in the same place at the same time to deliver as many routes as we could cover in one day. We called it a "Blitz Day," The event was a display of Southwest’s long history and ongoing commitment to the communities where our Customers and Employees reside.

It was also a way to support an organization and friend of Southwest, VNA Meals on Wheels. Many of the routes covered by our Employees on July 8 are usually delivered by paid drivers. By volunteering to deliver these routes, Meals on Wheels can use the money saved to add new clients and increase its reach across north Texas.

VNA Meals on Wheels delivers more than 4,000 nutritious hot meals to homebound ill, elderly, and disabled persons in Dallas County each day.

The event was held in honor of fallen solider Sergeant Charles B. Kitowski III, U.S. Army. Charles was a devoted Meals On Wheels volunteer, committed Southwest Employee, and dedicated service man who gave his life for his country.  His parents volunteered alongside the Share the Spirit volunteers. For a video of the event, please click here.