Wroclaw transport operator delivers free meals to medics and retirees

But they are not the only ones to benefit from the action

Yesterday, on World Health Day, the public transport operator of Wroclaw announced that it will be delivering free lunches to its retirees and to the medics from one of the city hospitals. By doing this, MPK Wroclaw wants to reduce the risk of their former employees contracting the coronavirus and to ensure that frontline workers do not have to worry about their next lunch.

Furthermore, there is another important social component to the action, namely the fact that people with disabilities will be preparing the meals.

A cooperation with a threefold purpose

For one month, starting from 7 April, MPK Wroclaw will be delivering fresh meals to retired employees of the company and to medics from the hospital at Kamieńskiego Street, who are fighting the COVID-19 pandemic. The operator decided to offer a helping hand to its former employees and protect their health in the midst of the third wave of the coronavirus pandemic.

“When delivering meals to our pensioners, we would often like to thank them for several dozen years of service for the inhabitants of Wrocław. The relay race of generations continues, because the people who gave the heart of Wrocław's public transport cannot be forgotten,” explained the president of MPK Wrocław, Krzysztof Balawejder quoted on the company website.

He added: “We should also remember that for older people going to the store to do shopping can be extremely risky. We want to reduce this risk, so from today we will deliver several dozen dinners every day”. 

Alongside seniors, the company wants to symbolically thank the medics for their daily fight for the health of Wrocław residents.

Furthermore, the dishes will be prepared by Cafe Równik, a catering establishment run by people with intellectual disabilities. There, on a usual day, one might see bartenders or waiters with Down syndrome, autism or aphasia. Working in catering can be seen as a kind of therapy, explained the city website.

Unfortunately, due to the COVID-19 restrictions, the cafe has been closed for many months and only serves takeaway meals. Leaving these people without work creates frustration and has a detrimental effect on the therapy, in the words of the founder of the café Małgorzata Młynarska.

The new form of cooperation with MPK Wroclaw will thus help employees stay active, which is good for their state of mind, dignity, and emotional health.