Wilson and Audrey Julian are on the front lines in the fight against hunger in New Orleans. They are volunteers with the Council on Aging's Meals on Wheels program.

They deliver meals to 38 senior citizens each weekday, making sure people like Wallace Simpson get the nutrition they need. For many, it is their only hot meal.

"The only meals that they receive at this time, and it is a real necessity,” said Julian.

The executive director of the New Orleans Council on Aging sent a letter to Governor Jindal and area legislators, asking that $300,000 cut from the budget be reinstated. He noted that this fiscal year the agency prepared more than 320,000 meals that were served to nearly 1,400 seniors at their homes, or at senior centers. He said Hurricane Gustav showed how little money for food many seniors have.

"We're still getting phone calls from seniors who ran out of food because of the storm. They had to evacuate, they didn't have enough money for, to take care of their everyday bills plus pay for food," said Howard Rodgers of New Orleans Council on Aging.

Rodgers said the $300,000 budget request was one of those cut because it was a non-governmental organization. But he said re-instating the funds would be a crucial move, allowing the agency to continue serving the meals seniors need, and that should qualify the Council on Aging for increased federal funding next year.

Right now there are 400 seniors on the waiting list for Meals On Wheels, plus three senior centers are expected to open in coming months and a number of senior housing complexes. However, the head of the Council on Aging says without financial help from the state, he doesn't know what will happen to those requests for food.

"Because we lost this $300,000,” Rodgers said, “we're going to end up having to look at the end of this year either. A, starting to reduce the amount of meals that we're sending out, or B, we're going to looking at reducing services that the Council on Aging gives to people in New Orleans. And then last, but not least, I'm going to have to start looking at staff layoffs."

Rodgers asked the governor to either re-instate the original $300,000 dollar budget request, or for help to find other funding for the nutrition program. Wilson Julian said the alternative of cutting back the number of meals served could mean seniors going hungry.

"If the cuts were made,” said Julian, “I don't know how they would survive."