Volunteering is a family value for the MacRaes
Three generations of Meals on Wheels volunteers is “a rare and moving legacy” says New Dawn’s Manager of Community Meals.
Three generations of the MacRae family
From left to right: Todd MacRae, his 20-year-old son, Preston, and his father, Donnie MacRae, who started volunteering with Meals on Wheels almost 25 years ago.
Preston MacRae has memories of volunteering with his father, Todd, from before he was ten years old, helping out at annual fundraising auctions for the local Sheriff’s department.
So, when his grandfather, Donnie, asked if he would help him deliver meals for Meals on Wheels, the answer was an easy one.
“I went with him a couple of times and started really liking it so then I would go every week after school and we would just deliver meals,” Preston says of his early days with Meals on Wheels. “It was fun. It was good bonding. I miss doing that with him.”
Preston eventually got his license and took on his own route for four or five years, providing meals and a friendly check-in for seniors and others who may be dealing with illness or mobility issues. Before he started delivering meals, Preston says he was very shy and quiet.
“I would barely talk at school and I think volunteering helped with that in a way, going around talking to people. I got to know everyone and that’s really useful. Now, I try talking to most people when I see them,” Preston says.
“It’s helped me a lot. I put Meals on Wheels on my resume and that was one of the reasons I got my job, because I had experience driving and delivering food,” says Preston, who is now 20 years old and has a full-time job delivering chips for Old Dutch.
His father, Todd, agrees the skills he learned volunteering with Meals on Wheels helped him get into the workforce. “He learned organization and learning to deal with different people, communicating with the public, and confidence in himself. Being at that age, being so young doing that and feeling like you’re accomplishing tasks, I think that really built a lot of character in him, and a sense of learning from his grandfather, as well,” Todd says.
Donnie MacRae in 2019
Donnie MacRae was recognized by Meals on Wheels for his 17 years of service.
Volunteering has always been an important part of Todd’s life. “Dad’s always brought us up in that context and it’s always been strong in our family,” he says. His dad, Donnie, started volunteering with Meals on Wheels almost 25 years ago, and has delivered more than 11,000 meals in that time. He “retired” from deliveries a few years ago, but Todd says his dad has started joining him on his route.
“I’m getting him back into it because he does it with me and it gives us a bond because we don’t get to see each other with the every day busyness, but it’s something we do together and we also incorporate my youngest now and he jumps right in and we always encourage that,” Todd says.
Like many non-profit organizations across the country, Meals on Wheels relies on volunteers — in 2025 alone, more than 200 volunteers contributed over 4,500 volunteer hours and delivered more than 40,000 healthy, affordable meals, improving access to nutritious food and social connection for vulnerable people in our community. Canadians have a strong tradition of volunteering but recent data reflect negative trends in volunteering. Results from a Statistics Canada survey on volunteering released in 2025 showed a significant decline in the percentage of Canadians volunteering for nonprofits and charities, from 44 percent in 2013 to 32 percent in 2023. Total volunteer hours dropped to 1.2 billion in 2023, down by nearly four-fifths from 2.0 billion in 2013 — a decline equivalent to roughly 451,000 full-time jobs.
The steepest drop in volunteering is among youth. From 2018 to 2023, the percentage of those aged 15-24 who volunteered with community organizations dropped from 52.3 percent to 39.9 percent, and the total number of hours spent volunteering by that age group went from 572 million hours to 491 million — a decline of 14 percent.
The Meals on Wheels team
From left to right, Hanna Oravecz, Sara Roth, Shannon MacNeil, Rob Stubbert
The numbers reflect what community organizations across the country have been feeling since the pandemic. With fewer donors, fewer volunteers, and increasing community needs, organizations like Meals on Wheels are being pushed to do more with less.1 The MacRae family shows that turning that trend around and getting young people involved in volunteering can be as simple as inviting them along, making it something you do together, and letting it grow from there.
“I have learned a lot about community service from Donnie, Preston, and Todd,” says Sara Roth, New Dawn’s Manager of Community Meals. “The (not-so-simple) act of inviting a child to join in your volunteer service builds a practice of volunteerism for a lifetime.”
Between the three MacRae family members, they’ve delivered more than 12,000 meals over the years.
“Across three generations, the MacRaes are sharing the values, skills, and actions that contribute to a just and resilient community. We’re so proud that they choose to volunteer with New Dawn Meals on Wheels,” Sara says.
For Preston, giving back to his community will always be an important part of his life, and he encourages other young people to give it a try, even if it seems intimidating at first.
“I would say, give it a chance. I think if you’re worried or scared to talk to people, just being out and doing it and helping out is all that really matters,” he says. “It’s nice to be a part of something and to help out.”
Learn more about volunteering with Meals on Wheels here.
2026 is the United Nations’ International Year of the Volunteer. Learn more here.
