About a year ago, the Ronald McDonald House located next to the Children's Hospital of Birhingham, Alabama started on renovations to the facility to add 73 new rooms to the already existing building. To everyone's surprise, RMHC's long-time partner La-Z-Boy Furniture Galleries , decided to fully furnish all 73 new rooms as a donation. Curt Morris and Renee Louallen of La-Z-Boy Furniture  La-Z-Boy celebrates it's now 10 year relationship with Ronald McDonald House Charities with 73 reasons to be thankful for this giving season , and the RMHC of Birmingham cannot be more thankful. “We’re so grateful to La-Z-Boy for many reasons. Not only have they furnished our Ronald McDonald House, they’ve become familiar friends to our guest families by preparing countless home-cooked meals and sharing warm smiles. I cannot tell you how much this means to the families after a long day at the hospital. At the Ronald McDonald House, family means hope, support and never fee...

With all the hype around cyber Monday, many are forgetting about the importance of Giving Tuesday. Our friend Anna Semonco of the South West Virginia of RMHC appears on the Virginia First news network. Anna shares with many the importance of giving Tuesday, and how it not only helps RMHC but how it helps people get to know the charities around them worldwide.  Giving Tuesday, for those who may not know, it is a global initiative to kick off the season of giving. When there are the seasons of black Friday, and cyber Monday, we are now getting into this charitable season and to bring global attention to it. The RMHC of South West Virginia jumped on this initiative last year for the first time, as a test run, and raised $13,000. This year they see that it as well worth it to jump on the giving Tuesday initiative again.  This year they have planned it where there is an open invitation to come by the RMHC of South West Virginia. Those who choose to swing by are...

The Ronald McDonald House of Oklahoma City has been growing like crazy. In the last three years, the request for rooms has shot up  57 percent . Over 800 families from 73 Oklahoma counties, 16 other states and one foreign country stayed at the Ronald McDonald House in 2017.  Before the expansion, Ronald McDonald House only 14 rooms on the third floor of Garrison Tower, which is connected via an elevated walkway to The Children's Hospital at OU Medicine. If the house was full, there were 14 additional rooms available at a local Holiday Inn. Those rooms fill up quickly and the house has had to turn away 414 just this year. The president and CEO of Ronald McDonald House Charities of Oklahoma City, Susan Adams, knew the home needed more space, but thought it would involve lots of fundraising and construction. That is when a  $2.4 million  gift from the pharmaceutical company AbbVie can to the rescue. Executive vice president of external affairs at AbbVie, Laura ...

Not your typical Tuesday night in Savannah, Georgia. An awards night hosted by the Ronald McDonalds House Charities in Savannah, thanking all of their volunteers who serve RMHC day in and day out.  RMHC’s most important assist is their volunteers, without them it is impossible for this organization to move forward and help impact as many families as we do.  Awards were handed out recognizing community impact by staff members, volunteers and families throughout RMHC. Each award that was handed out was in honor of those who make an impact on improving the quality of life for the families we serve as well as acts of greatness.  It takes truly amazing things for our community to give out as much as they do to these families. “A big heart. You’re talking about people that go beyond their day to day lives, both in time and commitment, being away from loved ones and they do that to take care of total strangers. They’re not doing it for a specific person. They’...

In 1998, The Ronald McDonald House of Minneapolis opened a one-room schoolhouse inside its Oak Street location. 20 years later, the schoolhouse is still going strong. The schoolhouse was created to help educate children who are staying in the Ronald McDonald House while their sibling is in the hospital. This location is one of only two one-room schoolhouses in the state. Cindy Britain celebrates 20th anniversary of schoolhouse during luncheon Currently, there are 14 children enrolled at the school, but the school can have up to 25 children at a time. These students range from kindergarten to 12th grade and come from all over the world. The school even had students from Saudi Arabi. The average stay at the school is about four months. None of this would be possible without the dedication of the director and teacher, Cindy Britain . Britain has been with the school since it opened in 1998. With the help of two assistant teachers, volunteers and students from th...

Just last month, on Oct. 26 th , Ronald McDonald House Charities of Maine hosted a widely successful fundraiser called The Hearts and Hands Gala . The event gave a chance for our families and staff to celebrate together all the good our organization has accomplished over the years.  The Gala held at Thompson’s Point in Portland, attracted huge media attention from many local outlets which brought out 225 guests to our red carpet event that graced us in raising $73,000 which will be used in the support of giving families of children receiving medical treatment in Maine a safe, clean, and affordable place to stay.  Jacob and Leah Sears, along with their 10-month-old son, Asher, who was born 10 weeks premature were just one of the 652 families served by the Ronald McDonald Houses of Portland and Bangor and delighted to be in attendance at The Hearts and Hands Gala to show their appreciation.   Jacob, Leah, and Asher Sears at The Hearts and Hands Gala   ...

A new family-centered maker space has just been opened in the Ronald McDonald House Stanford Center located in Palo Alto, California. This family-centered area will help families with sick children have a place to go to other than the hospital to support them with treatments, healthy coping methods, and promote healthy healing. For over forty years now Ronald McDonald House Charities has helped millions of families not only obtain affordable housing but also help families with any psychological, emotional, and physical distress that they may be experiencing. This new family center maker space is equipped with a 3D printer and other customized workspaces. This area encourages the families of the sick children as well as the children to design and express themselves visually. This new center provides a great outlet and serves as a different type of bonding for the families. RMHC seeks to enhance the lives of families in every aspect which is what sets them apart from any other c...