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My cousin, David, Me, baby Bonnie, Jennifer, and Christin at the Ronald McDonald House of Augusta, GA.
So I love the Ronald McDonald House! I have written about it before and I will probably write about it a hundred times more but I just cannot help but talk about it and how amazing it is! It has such a good purpose and the fact that families can stay there, free of charge, while their child is in the hospital or receiving treatment is an amazing reason. Another one, Eric and I had the opportunity to stay there when Judson was born while we were waiting on the court to release him into our custody. Imagine it, two terrified adoptive parents, out of state, no family around, new parents, and wanting to be as close to our baby as possible. The Ronald McDonald House gave us that ability and for that I will always be grateful. When Judson was born there were two people standing at the elevators of the hospital waiting for us...the case worker and the Ronald McDonald House representative. HOW.AWESOME.IS.THAT?!
Ronald McDonald House: Scranton, PA.
I have had several friends and family stay at the RMH over the years and each time I hear of someone staying at one of the houses across the United States I am even more motivated to give back. Did you know you can go on their websites and see their current needs? Did you know you can see on their individual facebook pages if they have something specific needed right then (like a washer and dryer, detergent, snacks, etc). The RMH in Augusta has "Wish list Wednesdays" where they list their current needs so that friends of the house can go collect items.
Judson and me delivering donated Super Hero capes to the RMH in Macon, GA for kids receiving treatment! These were donated by an awesome vendor at the Georgia National Fair who struck up a conversation with her. She said she wanted to donate 1 cape for every 1 sold to a charity. We suggested the Ronald McDonald House and volunteered my brother to gather them since he worked there. He collected and I delivered!
So last weekend my sweet friend, Christin, and I decided we would strike off to Augusta after church and deliver some Wish List Wednesday items that our friends had helped us gather. Since my friend, Jennifer, was staying at the house while her baby, Lindi, is in NICU we had planned to meet her and visit for a bit before coming home. When we walked in the door, though, I was very surprised to see....MY COUSIN! I knew my cousin, David, and his wife, Erin, had had a baby the day prior but I had no idea she would be in NICU. He was checking in to the house just as we were arriving. It was perfect timing to not only be able to see him but also to get a picture with both David and Jennifer. I love for people who donate items to me to deliver to be able to see the outcome and purpose of them. Being able to see someone "from home" getting to utilize the donated items was an absolute blessing.
I say it is a blessing because most of the time we just deliver and do "good things" but do not always get to see the results. With my Queen of Bags it is a 99% chance I will never know who got that bag but as long as I know a child is getting it that is all that matters. Getting to see friends and family and knowing they will get to make good use of what we have gathered is an amazing feeling and I am so happy that God put us there just in time to see my cousin.
The Ronald McDonald House of Charleston, SC.
No matter where you live you likely have a Ronald McDonald House near you. Save your can tops and drop them by when you are in that area. If you travel to the beach or mountains on vacation, scout out where the nearest one will be and drop off a pack of paper towels and tp, even a few boxes of granola bars and coffee for the people staying there. One thing Jennifer told me was how nice it was to be able to come downstairs in the morning and have a cup of coffee and to be able to do laundry and put clean sheets on her bed to feel somewhat like she was at home doing something. When you are not home and living back and forth at the hospital it is hard. You are likely away from family and friends, you are not getting good sleep and are likely in an unsettled state while you are there. If we can give a little bit and help those people have a little bit of love and support then why not? Why wouldn't we?! Below are the links to several Ronald McDonald House Charities across the US. Check out their websites and find their wish lists and figure out how you can help such an amazing organization with little extra cost out of your pocket!
Happy Fri-YAY y'all!
The boys and me at the Ronald McDonald House of Savannah/Golden Isles.
Augusta, GA
https://www.rmhcaugusta.org/WishList
Austin, Texas
https://rmhc-ctx.org/get-involved/wish-list/
Scranton, PA
https://rmhscranton.org/wish-list/
Phoenix, AZ
https://rmhccnaz.org/wp-content/uploads/Wishlist-2019.pdf
Southern, CA
https://rmhcsc.org/
Omaha, NE
https://www.rmhcomaha.org/get-involved/wish-list