In this photo from March 29, 2007, Annie Neri a program assistant and driver for Meals on Wheels lays out lunch for William Tarpy in his West Lawrence apartment.

The summer help is starting to thin out for Lawrence Meals on Wheels.

Substitute drivers are shouldering much of the load, and many Kansas University students who typically pitch in don’t usually start volunteering until after Labor Day.

“It’s a tough time for us now,” executive director Kim Culliss said.

Staff members are looking for six to 10 volunteers who can drive a route once per week from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. in their own vehicle.

The organization, started in 1970, delivers meals on weekdays to 120 people in Lawrence. The recipients are on doctor-prescribed diets or are senior citizens. About 100 volunteers are running 19 routes across the city now each weekday, but four to six of the routes regularly require substitute drivers.

Meals on Wheels for the last two years has seen its client base double, Culliss said. Clients pay for the meals, except for about 30 percent who pay what they can. Meals are prepared by Lawrence Memorial Hospital.

“Once somebody goes out on a route and meets our clients, they kind of get hooked,” Culliss said.

Meals on Wheels is a United Way-funded agency and also receives funding from several grant sources, donations and the Older Americans Act.

The organization’s major summer fundraiser, a benefit garage sale, will be 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday at AAPS Storage, 2400 Franklin Road. Board members hope to beat the $3,000 raised last year, Culliss said. People have donated enough furniture, toys and other items to fill 20 small storage sheds, she said.

“If you need it, I can almost bet we’ll have it,” Culliss said.

Anyone interested in volunteering can call 830-8844.