About Meals on Wheels

Our History

In 1956, the late Mrs. Rhoda Cameron of Ipswich (the wife of the then Commonwealth Health Minister) saw the need for a service to help feed the poor. She had been on an overseas trip to England, where she saw a form of meals service in operation and felt this was something needed in her own community. Mrs. Cameron returned to Ipswich and endeavored to promote the idea.

Although she was not initially successful, Mrs. Cameron’s determination was not dampened, and she, together with the late Mrs. Russell, commenced a “Meals on Wheels” service in her back yard gardener’s cottage, serving meals from a thermos flask and pudding basin. The price being two shilling (20 cents) per meal. At this time, there were no funds such as meal subsidies or Government Grants, so these people went ahead in faith, relying upon the sale of the meals to self fund their actives. From these humble beginnings, the concept of Meals on Wheels in Queensland has grown.

Cairns Staff

At Cairns Meals On Wheels we have 9 paid staff members: