Connie Grennan retired Thursday as director of Meals on Wheels of McPherson, on the last day of her 25th year in the position.
Grennan became Meals on Wheels director May 1, 2001. At the time, she had not been working for a few years, and she saw an ad for what was a part time position. “I had previously been working for McPherson County, and had done fill-in jobs for people, Grennan told Ad Astra News. Having young children at the time, Grennan said after seeing the ad she decided she could do this part-time.
When she started, Meals on Wheels was serving between 32 and 36 people a day. Today that number is in the 70’s. They make deliveries to homebound persons seven days a week, though some of those deliveries are Monday through Friday only.
During her tenure, the most difficult thing she faced was the impact of COVID-19, which had a major impact on the program requiring a revamp of the way they did things. One of the initial impacts was getting masks for everyone which in the early days of the pandemic was very difficult to obtain.
“I had a friend who was sewing masks and selling them. (I) placed an order with her and we had cloth masks for everyone before everyone could stock up on the blue ones you see nowdays,” Grennan explained.
The process of packaging meals also had to change. Prior to COVID, Meals on Wheels used insulated trays to deliver meals, which they would exchange each day. When back at McPherson Hospital, which prepares the meals, they would be sterilized and new liners put in for the following day’s meals.
Initially they changed to using Styrofoam trays, which took considerably more time and did not keep meals hot. The Meals on Wheels board was able to convince McPherson Center for Health to invest in a new packaging system that she said was the best thing they ever had.
“They keep the food hot for a long time, so I can deliver a meal to you an hour and a half after it was packaged, and it would still be hot,” she explained. That system by the way is now being used by the hospital, and Grennan said it’s one of the things she is proudest of in her 25 year tenure.
One of the first things on Connie Grennan’s agenda as she enters retirement is family. She has two grandchildren, age 17 months and five years, in Texas where her daughter lives. She also has two grown sons, one in McPherson and another in Oregon, which she’s also going to be able to visit more often.
Along with that, she is looking at joining a couple of boards in McPherson, and being more involved with United Way, “I truly believe in what they do. I’ve seen it here in how they have helped people with Meals on Wheels, and I know they help so many organizations,” Grennan said. She added she has a couple of other “irons in the fire,” not immediately, but she said she doesn’t believe she’ll have any trouble keeping busy,.
Succeeding Grennan as executive director is Shani Stewart, who has been working with her for the past 2 ½ weeks. Saying she’s filling some very big shoes, Stewart said she’s excited to fill this role. “I’m just so excited to be able to work with everybody, they people she’ll be meeting and those I’ve already met.”
Grennan stressed there won’t be a lot of changes. “we only do one thing, and I think we do it pretty darn well,” she explained, adding while she’s leaving a big part of herself there after 25 years, she feels confident in what she’s going to be able to do, and comfortable in leaving it in her hands.
