It will happen to you: your child is seriously ill and has to be admitted to hospital, far from home. Driving up and down for an hour or more every day: that is hardly possible, especially in the rollercoaster you and your family are in now. Even if you would love to do it, you naturally want to stay with your child. That is why the Ronald McDonald Houses were created. A way to be close together as a family. The Children’s Fund ensures that parents, brothers and sisters can sleep within walking distance of the hospital where the sick child is staying. And it works: 96 percent of parents indicate that they can continue to care for their child better thanks to a place in the Ronald McDonald House.
Every year, a total of 6,000 families spend the night in a Ronald McDonald House. That one night is of course wonderful, but on average families stay ten nights in a Ronald McDonald House. With the collected number of 7,562 overnight stays, we can offer just as many families one overnight stay in a Ronald McDonald House. In total, the families spend almost 60,000 nights a year in a Ronald McDonald House. So many more overnight stays are needed on an annual basis. With a contribution you can still make a difference for families with a sick child. With your donation you can give them peace and security in a very exciting time and they are close to their seriously ill child for as long as necessary.
An overnight stay in a Ronald McDonald House costs 60 euros and the Ronald McDonald Houses depend on volunteers, sponsors and donations. A number of Houses are also being expanded, because the need for a place close to the hospital is growing. In addition to the Ronald McDonald Houses, the Ronald McDonald House Rooms are also frequently visited each year: last year about 60,000 times. There, families found peace and space between their child’s treatments. There are eleven Ronald McDonald Living Rooms and work is underway on new Ronald McDonald Living Rooms at the NICU in the Emma Children’s Hospital in Amsterdam, the Jeroen Bosch Hospital in Den Bosch, the Maastricht UMC+ and the Franciscus Gasthuis in Rotterdam. Your support is therefore very much needed.
McDonald’s has been a loyal partner of the Ronald McDonald Children’s Fund from the very beginning. Since the foundation of the first Ronald McDonald House in the Netherlands in 1985, McDonald’s and the Children’s Fund have been working together, with the aim of bringing families closer together. As a partner of the Ronald McDonald Children’s Fund, McDonald’s set up this action week with RTL Boulevard. McDonald’s makes an annual contribution to the Children’s Fund. For example, part of every Happy Meal sold is donated. The franchisees also do a lot for the Children’s Fund locally. They donate an annual amount and are also involved in various ways with heart-warming (sponsor) campaigns, such as providing Mother’s Day breakfasts in the Houses or participating in HomeSports Events organized by the Children’s Fund.
There are now eleven Ronald McDonald Houses, twelve Ronald McDonald House Rooms and three holiday homes in the Netherlands. The Houses are close to (children’s) hospitals throughout the country. In the living rooms, in the middle of the hospitals, parents, brothers and sisters can find some rest between treatments. And families with a sick or care-intensive child can find relaxation in the fully adapted holiday homes.
Would you like more information about supporting the Ronald McDonald Children’s Fund? Then go to the website.
