Nutritious Meals Help Senior Regain Health and Independence

A teacher’s journey from the classroom to life with disability

“I went to San Francisco a long time ago,” Robert Vinton remembers. “We had the best fish — cod — I’ve ever tasted. We sat down outside, enjoyed the breeze and had a good time, not knowing that I was going to go blind.” Robert lost his sight at 54. At 78, he can still recall cherished memories in vivid detail. Each memory shared carries a lesson. The former reading teacher, who taught first through sixth grade, will never forget a young student being in tears after finishing Charlotte’s Web. The iconic children’s book is an enduring fable about life’s natural and often unpredictable moments.

Robert taught her the lesson, “It’s good to be a family, and people live, and people die.” That outlook has made Robert resilient to life’s hardships. Robert was born and raised in Pearsall, Texas, a city of 7,300 located 55 miles southwest of San Antonio. Robert, his mother and his two brothers lived in a one-room shanty. “All three brothers slept in one bed, and my mother would sleep on the floor,” Robert recalls. Living in extreme poverty never diminished his drive to accomplish great things. A talented trumpet player at Thomas Jefferson High School, he played in the marching and mariachi bands before graduating in 1965 to study education at St. Mary’s University in San Antonio.

Unfortunately, his teaching career was cut short by his blindness. This diagnosis diminished his independence; safely going outside alone or cooking alone were nearly impossible and dangerous tasks for someone without sight. For 16 years, Robert, who lives alone in a suburban area of San Antonio, mainly relied on family for meals.

“Before Meals on Wheels, I was eating whatever my daughters would bring me: string cheese, macaroni, pizzas, sandwiches, hamburgers and tacos,” Robert recalls.

How meals for seniors with disabilities support independence

Over time, his unhealthy diet began to affect his health, most noticeably through significant weight gain. Also, because his daughters couldn’t always find the time to drop off meals, Robert was sometimes left waiting and hungry. Something needed to change. Robert’s caregiver suggested he apply for Meals on Wheels. Yet, before receiving regular deliveries of the nutritious food he greatly needed, he had to endure a six-month waitlist, meaning more of the same irregular meal schedule, unhealthy food and adverse health outcomes. Today, Robert is grateful to receive nutritious meals from his local provider, Meals on Wheels San Antonio, five days a week.

“My daughters feel good because they know Meals on Wheels provides for me,” Robert says.

He especially loves fish, pudding, yogurt and familiar foods like enchiladas and chicken tamales that remind him of his Hispanic heritage. But the one meal he’d happily eat again and again is the Salisbury steak with green beans and either mashed potatoes or macaroni. Robert notes that the steak is perfectly prepared and easy to cut. He’s grateful to receive delicious meals that have helped him lose weight and improve his overall health. The quality of the food also stands out.

“Meals on Wheels gives you real good nutritional meals; they don’t give you any junk,” Robert asserts.

Robert is an enthusiastic supporter of Meals on Wheels, which he hopes will be there for him and other seniors when the unpredictable occurs or the natural challenges of aging at home strike. “I thank my lucky stars that we have people who have the ideals to help other people, other human beings like us, who can’t drive, who are blind, who are handicapped, who can’t go anywhere or are stuck in the house.”