In the US, approximately 12 million seniors are at risk of hunger and malnutrition every day. Home-delivered meals, from Meals on Wheels Northeastern Illinois, help keep the clients we serve healthy and connected, yet independent. Established in 1968, the Northeast Illinois branch of Meals on Wheels serves approximately 700 meals a day, six days a week, to older adults, as well as people with disabilities, across a large swath of the eastern metro Chicago region.
To better serve a growing population in need, Meals on Wheels Northeastern Illinois (NEI) has expanded its reach with a new Arlington Heights location. However, delivering daily meals to those who rely on them presents a formidable operational challenge. Meals on Wheels NEI’s critical computer systems are essential to this effort, supporting everything from tracking meal recipients and coordinating volunteers to powering crucial fundraising initiatives.
The Challenge
Rapid growth and expansion strained the limits of Meals on Wheels NEI’s in-house IT management. The demands of daily meal creation, coupled with the opening of a second location, created a significant backlog of unresolved IT issues. This lack of dedicated help desk support meant even minor technical problems could cripple staff access to critical systems, hindering their ability to serve the community. Furthermore, the escalating threat of cybercrime targeting non-profits left the organization vulnerable to ransomware attacks and potentially devastating data breaches.
For this small, community-focused team, providing adequate IT support was simply unsustainable. Having a managed services provider offered the ideal solution: ensuring their systems remain secure and up to date, while freeing the staff to focus on their core mission.
The Solution
A supporter of Meals on Wheels NEI, and a virtual Chief Information Officer at InterDev, learned of the problems the team was having, maintaining their systems on their own. They needed to be able to cost-effectively maintain and monitor their infrastructure, implement a firewall to secure against cyberattacks, and provide help desk support to troubleshoot user issues.
Meals on Wheels NEI partnered with InterDev, a leading managed services provider with a proven track record of serving government entities and non-profits throughout the Chicago metropolitan area. InterDev’s expertise in IT, networking, cybersecurity, and geospatial services made them the ideal choice. Their comprehensive suite of managed IT services for Meals on Wheels NEI included implementing a robust firewall, deploying SharePoint and Microsoft 365, providing responsive help desk support for issues ranging from printer malfunctions to complex system access, and coordinating with Comcast to establish reliable internet connectivity at the new Arlington Heights location.
“Partnering with InterDev has provided invaluable peace of mind. Meals on Wheels NEI can now concentrate on what we do best – serving our community – knowing our IT infrastructure is secure, reliable, and expertly managed.”
– Tricia Mullin, Executive Director, Meals on Wheels Northeastern Illinois
The Future
With the growing population of older adults in our country, Meals on Wheels NEI’s vital work has never been more critical. Their unwavering dedication to this expanding community of older adults in need is evident in their ambitious goal: delivering 220,000 meals annually in the near future. InterDev is proud to provide the essential IT support that will empower Meals on Wheels NEI to achieve this remarkable objective.
