Central Ohio Meals on Wheels group receives $5 million donation

COLUMBUS (AP) — The central Ohio Meals on Wheels Program has received an anonymous $5 million donation.

The Columbus Dispatch reports LifeCare Alliance received the donation in the form of a challenge grant. This means the donor will match new or increased gifts to the group’s endowment fund up to $5 million.

LifeCare President and CEO Chuck Gehring says the group has about $6 million in endowment funds today. The campaign has collected $300,000 as of Sunday evening.

The funding is much needed, as LifeCare’s government funding has decreased about 20 percent since 2001 while its clients increased from 7,500 to about 20,000 in the same period.

Gehring says the group provides 5,000 meals daily to the elderly and chronically ill in central Ohio.