The Soldotna Senior Center bought two new cars this week to enhance its Meals on Wheels program, courtesy of federal grant dollars.

Loretta Knudson-Spalding, the executive director of the center, said Wednesday that she’s excited for the new additions.

“It’s really kind of a dream come true for me,” she said. “As a new director, I’ve seen things that I know need to be replaced, but we all have limited funds because we’re nonprofits.”

The Soldotna Senior Center received $100,000 in federal American Rescue Plan Act funding, as part of the state’s $20 million grant for the nonprofit sector, Knudson-Spalding said.

The center spent $80,000 on both Ford Edge automobiles, she said, and plans to spend the remaining $20,000 on kitchen supplies and other infrastructure the facility needs for its food delivery service.

“It’s just going to all be to boost our meal program here,” Knudson-Spalding said.

Like other senior centers on the central peninsula and in the state, the Soldotna facility struggled during the COVID-19 pandemic. Knudson-Spalding told the Clarion last October that the virus did damage to the community by isolating seniors.

But now the senior center is hosting in-person meals again, and plans to use the new cars to enhance at-home delivery — which feeds around 150 people every day.

Although the new cars will primarily be used for the Meals on Wheels program, she said they will also be used to transport some of the seniors to lunches and other activities at the center.

“We just want to make sure that we have everything we need to continue our programs and make sure that seniors have proper nutrition,” Knudson-Spalding said. “Because (for) some of them, it’s their only meal of the day.”

The cars will be ready to hit the road next week.

Reach reporter Camille Botello at camille.botello@peninsulaclarion.com.

Soldotna Senior Center Executive Director Loretta Knudson-Spalding, left, and Jill Schaefer, regional director of the Office of the Governor, pose next to the senior center’s new cars in Soldotna, Alaska, on Wednesday, March 30, 2022. (Camille Botello/Peninsula Clarion)