As we navigate the uncertainty of COVID-19, Ronald McDonald House Charities of Chicagoland & Northwest Indiana is committed to providing a safe and supportive environment where families with hospitalized children can get better together. Learn how you can help.
Meet our volunteers! Each month, we’ll be highlighting a stand-out volunteer (or two) and how they support families. For February, meet Sandy and Joe Bard, who volunteer at both a Ronald McDonald House and a Family Room.
When Emily was just three months old, she had her first open heart surgery. “It meant the world to us that I was able to stay so close to her,” her mom, Laurie, said. “Thanks to Ronald McDonald House, Emily was never alone.”
A few weeks before Everly Backe entered the world, her parents learned she would be born with a congenital heart defect. Within three days of her birth, Everly had open-heart surgery. It was the first of three she’d undergo before her first birthday.
Meet our volunteers! Each month, we’ll be highlighting a stand-out volunteer (or two) and how they support families. For January, meet Bob Colvin, who has been volunteering at our Ronald McDonald House near Lurie Children’s since 2017.
We are pleased to announce that new Vice President of Development Jeff Hammock will succeed Jim De Maria beginning on January 7. After an intensive three-month search process, we are fortunate to bring Jeff and his authentic, collaborative, and mission-focused style to our incredibly talented team.
Meet our volunteers! Each month, we’ll be highlighting a stand-out volunteer (or two) and how they support families. For December, meet Linda and Lora, two sisters who have volunteered at our Ronald McDonald House near Central DuPage Hospital since it opened.
Bob Behounek, a volunteer with the Charity for more than 12 years, has been selected as a finalist for The NASCAR Foundation’s 2019 Betty Jane France Humanitarian Award. The award is presented to a NASCAR fan who has done exceptional volunteer work on behalf of children in their community.
When your child is sick, it’s hard to think of anything beyond the next doctor’s visit or treatment appointment. But this summer, two major initiatives at the Ronald McDonald House near Lurie Children’s are addressing family needs from housing to emotional support to make it a little easier for parents to focus on the most important thing – their child’s health.
When five-year-old John Francis was airlifted from Children’s Mercy Hospital in Missouri to Lurie Children’s on May 1, his parents, Hemma and John, had no idea how long they would be away from home and their other two children. All they knew was that their son needed a new heart.