The RMHC is one of our favorite Charities for some very obvious reasons. Thanks to them, we had a free place to stay in December of 2000, when our son, Sullivan, was flown to Toledo because he stopped breathing and needed specialized care. At the time, the hospital in Toledo was an hour and a half from home and our son 5.5 weeks old. We didn’t know if we were coming or going, how long we’d be in Toledo with him…but the hospital and the House in Toledo made it easier on us.
Not only was staying in the house free, but food was provided. There was a full pantry with every food imaginable stocked from quick snacks to components of a healthy dinner. To our amazement, the counters in the kitchen were overflowing with treats that had been donated. Every sweet, rich comfort food you can imagine was there: cupcakes, cookies, coffee cake, chocolate cake, candies…the list goes on. It was just before Christmas and the Ronald McDonald House was apparently high on the list of places for people tomake donations at that time of year.
In subsequent stays throughout the following two years, it became obvious that the House had support, but it was most apparent in the Christmas season. During the rest of the year, it was quietly dedicated volunteers who kept the house running. They did not offer as many treats or as many gifts for the families that stayed there, but what they helped maintain was a clean, peaceful place to stay with warm, caring people who were almost always willing to talk. Once, when we stayed in July, we decided that it was a place that knows the true feeling of the Holiday season….year round. We found the same caring support in July that we’d found in December. In December the level of support astounded us, but we kind of passed it off on the Holiday season’s affects on people. When the generosity level was the same in July, we felt profoundly grateful for the RMH.
Supporting the RMH came in many ways. For some, saving pop tabs is the easiest way to help. By recycling the pop tabs, the House is able to earn the money to buy groceries throughout the year. For others, giving money is easiest. This money often goes into maintaining the individual rooms in the House. For others, giving their time makes the most sense. Volunteers maintain the House and make it run. The people that give their time to the House are committed to helping the families staying there. Some volunteers commit to a day of helping and others make a monthly or semi-yearly commitment.
After Sullivan died in 2002, and we’d had some time to mourn, we decided to make a trip back to “the home away from home” which we had gotten to know so well. We knew we wanted to volunteer, but we weren’t sure what kind of commitment we could make. At first, we made a meal each month. At that time the RMH in Toledo was just starting its “Dinner on the House” program. I’m not sure it was even an organized effort at the point. But we came once a month and made a meal, usually crockpot chili, for the families staying there. Sometimes we made it ahead of time, other times we cooked it there. Sometimes we brought the food to be used and other times we used the food the House provided. It was a very flexible set up. We usually made a carnivore version and a vegetarian version.
It was a very good experience for us. It kept us in touch with people that had helped us through some very hard times, making it harder to feel totally alone in our grief. It also helped us feel that we were giving something back to an organization that helped us significantly. As time went on, we progressed from just providing meals, to doing light chores around the House. We eventually made a commitment to be there once a month to help out in any way we could for a Sunday afternoon. We took the kids with us and they helped as they were able.
Every year, RMHC sponsors something called World Children’s Day on November 20th. It’s a fundraising effort for the organization, usually channeled through local McDonald’s restaurants. (McDonald’s restaurants and the RMHC are only loosely affiliated by name and founder. They are, in fact, seperate entities.) Giving a donation during this fundraising drive is one way to give support to the Ronald McDonald House Charities.
The RMHC does so much more than just provide a “home away from home” to families whose children are hospitalized. They support families around the world through their Houses, Family rooms set up in hospitals to help families find some peace during their time there, and through their Care Mobile program which helps children in need with medical services on a worldwide basis. There is more information on their website about each of these programs and about ways to help. Please consider doing something to support this organization. It doesn’t take much to remove a tab from your pop can (or soda can or beer can or cat food can). Each tab makes a difference to the RMHC, though.
