Behind every statistic is a family finding their feet while their lives have been turned upside down. For many families, Ronald McDonald House becomes so much more than a place to stay. It’s where exhausted parents get a shower after days in hospital. Where siblings still get to be together. Where birthdays are celebrated, milestones are marked, and cups of tea are shared during the hardest moments of their hospital journey. Every family’s journey is different. Some stay for days, some for months. Some arrive suddenly with no time to prepare. But all of them have one thing in common – they needed to be close to their child when it mattered most.
These are just some of their stories.
“The Ronald McDonald house gave me somewhere to go when I needed support, being far away from home the staff always gave me a shoulder, made me laugh, supported me in the way I needed.
I made some great life longs friends staying there and will truly never forget how it uplifted me on my hardest days.”
“While our son Oscar was in hospital, Ronald McDonald House became a true home from home for our family. At one of the most challenging times in our lives, the staff wrapped us in care and looked after us in ways both big and small.
The space and thought given to our whole family, especially Arthur, meant we could remain a family and not just parents in crisis. That care has had a lasting impact on usand always will.”
“The support we received went beyond a warm meal, or a comfortable bed. Everyone saw us as the Barnes-Aabo family, not just a family with a critically ill child.
Staff, familes and volunteers got to know us as individual people. It provided a sense of normalcy and strength that we wouldn’t haveotherwise received.”
The staff at The Ronald McDonald House were like “it’s ok, what can we do to help?”.
They just know. They let you vent, they just listen. If you want to scream or shout they’ll be there. There were times they needed to pock me up off the floor, and they were like “it’s fine, we’ve got you. They do selfless work and they do it all with a smile on their face. The House was a lifeline for us.”
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