Douglas-Williams

Douglas worked until he was 70. Now, the retiree is spending his golden years helping fellow seniors get enough to eat.  

Williams lives in a senior apartment complex of 300 for residents over age 65. Over the past year, the former painter and construction worker has spent time driving around the city picking up food at Harvesters mobile distributions. 

“I could see that people didn’t have any food to eat and I’d listen to them in the lobby talking about where they have to go to get food…and how they have to get this because they can’t afford that,” Douglas said.  

Seniors on fixed incomes can face barriers that impact their access to food, including: 

  • Inflation: “Food has really gone up in price.”. 
  • Transportation: A decline in both physical health or cognitive abilities, such as dementia, may prohibit seniors from driving to shop or pick up groceries. 
  • Health: Some also seniors lack the health or cognitive abilities to cook meals for themselves. 
  • Housing: Housing can take up a lion’s share of a fixed income, and many seniors he knows move out of their homes to apartments because “they can no longer afford the taxes.”  
  • Financial resources: Douglas has coffee every Wednesday with three 99-year-old men who live in his complex, but living a long life also can exhaust savings and other social resources. 

“I saw all kinds of people that couldn’t make it: ‘Why don’t they do something about this? Why don’t they help these people out?’ But the management wouldn’t do it. So, a lot of times these people would have to move out to somewhere where they could get enough to eat, so I like to help out these people so they can stay,” he said. 

Which is why Douglas arrived at First Baptist Church in Stilwell two hours before the distribution was scheduled to begin, ensuring he’s near the front of the line before the food runs out. His car gets 32 miles per gallon, and he doesn’t mind “picking up for a whole community.” 

“I’ve always looked for a chance to help out other people. My wife used to do that all the time. The whole time she was alive she used to help people, and my daughter has gotten into it. She guides me on different places to go,” he said. “I’m not wanting any kind of recognition from it. I’m just doing it because I can.”