SAVANNAH — Senior Citizens Inc., a nonprofit dedicated to helping people age successfully, will host its fourth annual Miles for Meals 5k Run/Walk at 8 a.m. May 17 at Daffin Park.
One-hundred percent of the proceeds will benefit the local Meals on Wheels program, which provides a hot, nutritious meal to seniors throughout Coastal Georgia.
“Run, walk or race with ‘celebrity’ veggies for a morning filled with fun, laughter and excitement for the entire family,” a spokesperson for Miles for Meals said.
 Participants are encouraged to wear vegetable, fruit or other food-related costumes.
“You’ll leave knowing you have made a difference in the lives of seniors in your community,” the spokesperson said.
 The run/walk will begin at the park and pass through Police Memorial Trail before ending in front of Grayson Stadium. The first 300 finishers will receive a free Adidas/Fleet Feet Sports visor. Food, drinks and awards will be distributed after the race.
 Last year, SCI lost $126,000 in funding because of sequestration and this year will be getting around $300,000 less in federal and state grant money in the upcoming budget. These cuts prevent Meals on Wheels from helping seniors in need.
Through Meals on Wheels, SCI delivers more than 1,800 hot meals each day to seniors throughout Coastal Georgia, while at the same time offering them a friendly midday visit.
 In many cases, these seniors are homebound and this one daily meal is their only source of sustenance.
It takes just $6 a day to provide a hot, nutritious meal to a homebound senior, yet more than 600 seniors, at or below the federal poverty line, await nutrition support in Chatham County alone.
And Georgia ranks No. 6 on Meals on Wheels Association of America’s “Top Ten Hunger States” list, based on a recently released research study, with nearly one in every 12 seniors in Georgia being at risk of hunger.