People who count on Senior Services of Island County for hot meals can now do so during power outages as well.

Puget Sound Energy recently donated a large generator to the organization’s Meals on Wheels program, and dignitaries gathered for a ribbon cutting ceremony Friday, Sept. 18. The generator will allow the non-profit group to prepare food for Meals on Wheels and prevent loss of refrigerated inventory during an outage.

“I want to express deep appreciation to the PSE Foundation for making a dream come true,” said Cheryn Weiser, executive director of Senior Services. “In 43 years of service, this is the first time SSIC has adequate back-up power supply to assure continued operations.”

“We also welcome the generator for the capacity to extend our services to seniors, their families, and their caregivers by providing a warming site during extended power outages.”

Brandon Lohse, a Puget Sound Energy Foundation member, said helping communities prepare for emergencies is vitally important. In particular, the foundation is targeting rural and low-income communities that are particularly vulnerable to storm-related outages, he said.

“Therefore, over a five-year period the foundation will donate $1 million for high-capacity generators across our service territory,” he said.

Senior Services received one of four grants in the initial round of funding. The others are in Cle Elum, Lakewood, and Sedro Woolley.