TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — High gas prices in Arizona are impacting volunteer drivers for Mobile Meals of Southern Arizona, a non-profit that delivers meals to people who cannot leave their homes. However, some volunteers say they are willing to pay more at the pump to support their community.
According to AAA, Arizona's average for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline is about $4.70, compared to the national average of $4.12.
For volunteers with Mobile Meals of Southern Arizona, every delivery starts on the road, and lately, that road has gotten more expensive. Art Evans has spent about 15 years delivering meals across Tucson, covering multiple stops in a single shift.
"I filled up the other day, it was $50 for my tank, and I’ve never seen it that much," Evans said.
Evans says even as prices rise, he is happy to absorb the extra cost to keep the mission going.
"I'm fortunate enough to have the resources to do it, and I can't think of anything better that I would want to spend a little extra money on. If I had to spend a little extra money, I would just--I would assume to spend it driving for Mobile Meals," Evans said.
Mobile Meals relies on volunteers like Evans to deliver tens of thousands of meals every year.
"We have 200 volunteers delivering 90,000 meals, so that equaled over 160,000 miles," said L’Don Sawyer, CEO of Mobile Meals of Southern Arizona.
Even as gas prices in Arizona remain higher than the national average, volunteers say the mission has not changed, but the cost of getting there is something they are paying more attention to.
"People are thinking before they take on that route, that may be 50 miles round trip, whereas before calling people and having them do that was not a real problem," Sawyer said.
With summer approaching, the challenge could grow. Sawyer says the non-profit typically loses about a quarter of its volunteers during the hotter months.
“We are concerned going forward that as people look to volunteer assignments that may work for them, that they will be thinking about the amount of miles they will be driving and what that would cost," said Sawyer.
Mobile Meals is actively searching for volunteers ahead of summer to keep those deliveries going.
"Our volunteers care so much about this program and about their clients, and they understand the importance of not only getting a meal to a client, but checking on them--making sure that they are able to answer the door, if someone fallen, has someone had a medical episode. So, we always say that we are more than a meal, and we are! We're a meal, plus we're that wellness check," Sawyer said.
Sawyer says volunteer drivers may qualify for mileage reimbursement through the Regional Transportation Authority. Mobile Meals asks volunteer drivers to record their mileage each month to keep a record of their mileage for submission.
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Jacqueline Aguilar is a multimedia journalist at KGUN 9. Born and raised in Yuma, AZ., she is no stranger to the unforgiving Arizona heat. Now this U of A wildcat is excited to be back in Tucson and is looking forward to involving herself in the community. Share your story ideas with Jacqueline by emailing jacqueline.aguilar@kgun9.com or connecting on Facebook, Instagram or X.
