Volunteer Spotlight

Allison Lee has been a dedicated volunteer with Meals on Wheels Durham since July 2023, completing an impressive 171 Wellness Calls, often reaching out to clients on routes G, H, and Q+ in the past year. That's over 170 hours of meaningful connection!

Allison's motivation to volunteer with MOWD stems from her personal experience—her grandfather was a client of Meals on Wheels Durham from the late '70s to the mid-'80s, and the program made a significant difference in his life. She now pays this kindness forward by bringing joy and companionship to others.

Her favorite part about being a Wellness Caller is checking in regularly with her MOW friends. These conversations always reveal something they have in common, whether it’s a favorite season, a family member, a recipe, or the weather. Each call is filled with mutual gratitude and shared stories.

Outside of her volunteer work, Allison enjoys cooking, gardening, and listening to all kinds of music. She has three children who live in the area and two grandsons who are NCSU graduates—one residing in Raleigh and the other in NYC. Allison retired in 2019 after a fulfilling 19-year career in Marketing with several Assisted Living and Memory Care Communities in the Triangle.

From everyone at Meals on Wheels Durham, we extend a huge thank you to Allison for her incredible volunteer service and the positive impact she continues to make in our community!

Barbra Roberman has been a volunteer with Meals on Wheels Durham since November 2023. She comes to help inside the facility or drive a route about once a week, her favored route being 27701A in the Old North Durham area. Barbra is always willing to jump in and help where needed, often bagging pet food when it’s getting low, or driving and helping inside on the same day! She even created name tags for all the inside helpers one day so that they could all get a chance to know each other.

Barbra started volunteering with MOWD after she heard about the opportunity from other volunteers. Her favorite part of volunteering at MOWD is how friendly the clients, volunteers, and staff are. 

Barbra has been married for 43 years and has two adult children. She moved here 36 years ago from New York City, and worked for over 25 years as a midwife in a private practice and at Duke. She loves to bike, hike, and kayak. 

From everyone at Meals on Wheels Durham, we want to give Barbra a huge ‘thank you!’ for her volunteer service.

Doug Sherry has been a volunteer with Meals on Wheels Durham since May 2023! He is currently an adopted hot meal route driver, taking Route 27703A in eastern Durham every Wednesday, and often picking up additional routes when there’s a need. Doug started volunteering at MOWD because he wanted to give back to his community in a meaningful way; his mother was a Meals on Wheels client, so he wants to be able to reciprocate that same service for others who need a hot meal. 

His favorite part of volunteering is interacting with the clients—being able to greet them on the phone and then handing them their meal, brightening their day in just a few seconds. One of Doug’s favorite experiences while volunteering was when he was making deliveries to a Durham school that had been renovated into housing. He inquired of one client about the history of the school, having been a teacher himself, and she told him that she went to this school as a young girl. In fact, the apartment she rented was once her classroom!

Doug and his wife Claudia have two daughters and five amazing grandchildren. They previously lived in Asheville, and moved to Durham to be closer to one of their daughters. They have a passion for traveling, and have visited over 25 countries around the world! Doug and Claudia also love visiting gardens and arboretums, some of their favorites being Duke Gardens; Butchart Gardens in Victoria, British Columbia; and the Royal Botanic Gardens in Edinburgh, Scotland. 

From everyone at Meals on Wheels Durham, we want to give Doug a huge ‘thank you!’ for his volunteer service.