The Ronald McDonald House in Columbus, Ohio is growing for a million reasons. Click the image below to watch the video that aired on NBC4 this week featuring two of our board members, Bruce Burkholder and Tammy Roberts Myers, speaking with Shawn Ireland on the Live Happy, Live Well program. To learn more about our campaign, visit www.RMHC-CentralOhio.org/amillionreasons .

An open letter to Ronald McDonald House Charities of Central Ohio:

I have had a dual career and when I retired from nursing, I was back into real estate full time. I was a NICU RN for 26 years. I now own my own Real Estate brokerage here in Mason County, West Virginia. I actually drove from here to Columbus my last six years before retiring and worked at the Nationwide Children’s Hospital NICU at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center. Ronald McDonald Charities has always held a special place for me because of my NICU background as an RN. I worked in Phoenix for 20 years and upon moving back here to be near family, but did my last 6 years in Columbus.

My brokerage was a center here in Mason County for donations over the holidays in honor of one of your guests Hannah and Jay Parrack and their son Sutton that had a lengthy stay at NCH. We spearheaded the effort and took donations from individuals, businesses, plus a few 4-H clubs and an elementary school. We advertised on social media and walked in the Christmas parade and handed out a 1000 flyers plus advertised about the donation drive at other holiday events.

Not just Sutton, but so many children in this area end up at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus. It is rural here for the most part, so our sick babies and children almost always have to leave the area. Yes, we have Ronald McDonald Charities here in Huntington, but I know it’s even a greater burden when our families have to be in Columbus as it’s over 2 hours away. So many children in this area have benefited from your Columbus Ronald McDonald House.

We aimed to deliver everything to you in January, but the weather has not been cooperative to us! My secretary worked tirelessly and organized everything we delivered today. You should have seen our office the last few weeks of the year when donations were coming in!!!

Kind Regards,
Angie

Angie Cline Zimmerman, Broker/Owner, The Angie Zimmerman Realty Group

A Response From The Parrack on Facebook

Click here to see the post on Facebook.

Thank you so much to Angie Cline Zimmerman, Broker/Owner, The Angie Zimmerman Realty Group and group, Point Pleasant Primary School and all the people who donated to Angie to support the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Central Ohio. I was truly amazed to walk in today and see how many items have been collected. I cannot wait for it to get delivered! We stayed at the [Ronald McDonald House in Columbus] for 90 straight days. To say RMHC is a blessing is an understatement. I’m so proud to be part of a community that is willing to support this cause! Thank you so much Angie for putting this all together to honor Sutton and any other local kids who have used the Ronald McDonald House! What a blessing this will be for all the families in need!!

Sutton wanted to help start carrying it all to the truck.

Photo credit: Sutton Strong/Facebook

Guest Blog & Photos By Bryana Wallace

My name is Bryana Wallace, I am 18 years old, and I am currently a sophomore in the nursing program at Ohio University. All throughout high school, I participated in competitive and school cheerleading as well as cross country. In January 2019, I was throwing my flyer around at competitive cheer practice, when she came down and elbowed me in the neck causing swelling. We thought nothing of it. I sat out that week until the swelling went down. After the swelling went down there was a lump right above my collarbone. For months we thought it was nothing, I had an ultrasound, and everything seemed fine. I was told it was just an internal bruise and it would go away on its own. Many months went by, and the lump was not getting smaller, some days it even looked bigger. A biopsy was then taken and on August 15th, 2019, I was told I had stage 2 Hodgkin’s Lymphoma.

The week of August 19th, 2019, I had many scans and appointments with the doctor only to hear I would be starting Chemo treatments August 23rd. I attended the first day of my junior year and on the second day of school I started chemotherapy. After treatments began, I could not go to school. I missed half of my junior year but thanks to Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Ohio State University and Alexander High School, I was able to get a robot that I could connect to from home so that I could be in classes.

The nurses and doctors at NCH were amazing. They made me feel as at home as possible. I might have been receiving chemo and going through the hardest parts in my life, but I will never forget the amount of comfort I felt at NCH. The nurses made a big impact on me personally. I knew I always wanted to be a nurse, but I wasn’t quite sure just what kind of nursing I wanted to do. It wasn’t until a nurse came in who was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s at the age of 16. She told me her story and to see where she was now, inspired me. It made me realize that I wanted to help other children and be able to share my story as a Pediatric Oncology Nurse.

The Ronald McDonald House will forever have a special place in the hearts of me and my family. On the eighth day of my chemo schedule, like clock-work, I would get a fever about 4 hours after treatment. I lived about 2 hours away from NCH so whenever I got a fever, I was sent to my local ER, then was taken to NCH by an ambulance. After that first ride in an ambulance, we knew something needed to change. Fortunately, I was given the opportunity to stay at the Ronald McDonald House with my family. After staying that first night, my family and I made it a point to stay there after day eight of each cycle, knowing what was coming. The workers – including volunteers – at the Ronald McDonald House were the sweetest people with the biggest hearts. They made sure everyone had what was needed, snacks were provided all day, and they arranged for people to come in to make food for the families staying there, including mine. I was not able to stay an entire night at the House, except for the last cycle of treatments. That’s because after getting a fever, I would be admitted, of course. However, whenever I had to go to the ER, the workers at Ronald McDonald would allow us to keep our bags in the room until we had time to go back over and process our check out.

The Ronald McDonald house helped relieve a burden for my family by providing all of the comforts of home and knowing we were right across the street from the hospital when I would get sick. It can never be expressed enough how valuable a resource the Ronald McDonald House is and the services they provide to people that desperately need them. I can never thank the Ronald McDonald house enough for not only me but all of the other families that have stayed, are staying there now, or ever will stay there in the future as the House gets bigger.

In 2020, I spoke at the Bobcathon dance marathon and shared my story. After hearing that they raised money for Ronald McDonald House Charities of Central Ohio, I knew this would be a great opportunity to give back. I am currently the Director of Fundraising for the student group. The biggest event I planned was a 5k. We ended up raising over $1,500 for the Ronald McDonald House! I have learned so much being a part of Bobcathon. Being able to raise money for such a great place has been amazing. RMHC helped not only my family but thousands of families as they go through some of the hardest journeys in their lives.

To all of the supporters and potential sponsors of this year’s Bobcathon, I cannot begin to thank everyone enough. Without the support of many people around not only the Athens community but all over, we would not have been able to make this all possible to help the House. Knowing that so many people have already donated to the Ronald McDonald House hits really close to home, especially in my family. No family should have to fight their battles alone!

To learn more about BobcaThon or make a donation, click here.

Bryana with fellow BobcaThon student organizers visit the Ronald McDonald House to volunteer.

For several years, Village Green Properties in Central Ohio have had a fundraising day called Splash Day, centered around the pool at its residential complexes.  On May 2 Industry, Village Green’s newest Columbus property, held it’s first Splash Day at its roof-top pool. Welcoming guests and residents of the party to the lobby was a red and white play house with a yellow flower box on it’s big window. It turns out that a couple of the Industry staff decided to use some left over construction materials from the new structure to build that play house to be delivered to the Ronald McDonald House in Columbus. A few days later, the man who built the little house was dropping it off at the Ronald McDonald House for children to use while staying in our big House. Click the image below to see a short video about the arrival of the little house and hear from the Industry maintenance pro who built it.

NBC News senior investigative correspondent, Cynthia McFadden, and her crew were the first TV news cameras allowed inside the new psychiatric tower at Nationwide Children’s Hospital recently. McFadden aired a lengthy feature report on the Today Show this morning as part of it’s Mind Matters series, and followed up with a more serious report inside the crisis department for Nightly News with Lester Holt, as the anchor broadcast LIVE from Cleveland for an 0n-the-road edition of the newscast.

We’re proud to have the first-of-its-kind Ronald McDonald Family Room in a pediatric-specific psychiatric facility, where family members can take a break from the patient’s room, but still be close by. Since the hospital can’t offer tours to groups, this rare glimpse inside the hospital shows the important work going on that we’re so happy to support.

The pandemic has led to a troubling increase in mental health issues for young people across the country, even as many resources are shrinking. The past year has brought a stunning increase in the proportion of mental health visits to the ER — up 31 percent nationally for those 12 to 17, and 24 percent for kids 5 to 11. The hospital’s new Behavioral Health Pavilion is one of only a few pediatric psychiatry hospitals in the country with in-patient treatment.

Watch both of McFadden’s reports below and take a tour of our family room in the third video.

BobcaThon students dance during 2020’s dance marathon in February.

By Maranda Gammage, RMHC of Central Ohio Development Associate

After months and months of hard work, Bobcathon is finally here this weekend! No matter what obstacle they were faced with this last year, the students at Ohio University have not stopped working to raise funds that are critical in helping families at RMHC.

Usually, Bobcats would be joining together in person to dance and raise funds for families at Ronald McDonald House. This year, students will be coming together from wherever they are to walk, bike, run, swim and hike their own 12K to represent the 12 hours that they would typically be dancing for the kids. They know that families at RMHC cannot take a break from their fight, so these students cannot either!

Click here to check out a recent article in Ohio News about the determination of this group to support our Ronald McDonald House.

Bobcathon has raised nearly HALF A MILLION dollars for RMHC, but they need your help to reach this milestone by Sunday!

You can make a difference TODAY when you click here and donate $25 to help support families of RMHC. Thank you!

Photo courtesy: Linde’s Livestock Photos

The Ohio Cattlemen’s Association (OCA) youth program, BEST (Beef Exhibitor Show Total) is for youth ages 8-21 years and over the last few years, the group has co-hosted the Celebrity Showdown at the Clark County Cattle Battle with an online auction to benefit Ronald McDonald House Charities chapter. This fun event features BEST program members dressing up in costumes along with the cattle they show. Sponsored by The Clark County Cattle Producers, this year’s fundraiser February 1-2 gained $37,000.

Click here to read the article covering the event by Ohio’s Country Journal.

Click here to see photos from the event thanks to Linde’s Livestock Photos.

Photo Courtesy: ohiocattle.org

Ronald McDonald House Charities of Central Ohio is honored to be chosen for the second year by The Ohio Cattlemen’s Association BEST Program for its community service project. The BEST (Beef Exhibitor Show Total) is a youth program of the OCA that recognizes Ohio’s junior beef exhibitors for participation and placings through a series of sanctioned cattle shows that include showmanship competitions. This year, when participants raise at least $100, they’re eligible to enter The Celebrity Showdown, which includes costumed and non-costumed entries in the Champion’s Center at the Clark County Fairgrounds in Springfield. Members of BEST are also encouraged to collect pop tabs that will be donated to RMHC of Central Ohio. The following article, copied from The Pulse, powered by Sullivan Supply, gives more details:

The Ohio Cattlemen’s Association and OCA BEST Program are teaming up with Ronald McDonald House Charities of Central Ohio (RMHC) for the 2020-21 BEST community service project. RMHC’s mission is to create, find, and support programs that directly improve the health and well-being of children and their families.

Miss Autumn Regula and her doctors, Dr. Maryam Fouladi – Nationwide Children’s and Dr. Lionel Chow – Dayton Children’s will be judging the dress up show this year. Although we can’t have spectators at the show, you can watch it online – thanks to Walton Webcasting, Friday the 29th at 6pm [see promotional video at the end of this article]. Each exhibitor in this special show raises at least $100 for RMHC to participate by dressing up themselves and their calf – it’s a lot of fun, if you have never seen it – be sure to watch Friday!

The Celebrity Showdown from January 2020.

The online auction is hosted by the Clark County Cattle Producers and Clark County Cattle Battle, and all of the proceeds from this online auction go directly to RMHC. The proceeds from several lots will be going to a special research study, this is denoted on each lot. Proceeds will benefit Connect Consortium, DIPG research being conducted by Autumn Regula’s doctor, Dr. Maryam Fouladi. Dr. Fouladi is a global leader in this very rare form of pediatric brain cancer. Her research team currently has four studies that need funding to be able to open and impact children around the globe.

Auction starts Thursday January 28th and closes Monday February 1st, hosted by Breeders World. With over 100 lots, there is something for everyone on the online auction! Take a minute to see all of the wonderful items that have been generously donated by so many great people.

View the auction and place your bids at: www.breedersworld.com/search?auction=584

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Andy Velazquez and his mom Carolina pose for a picture with Frankie Hejduk and SC Crew Cat from the Columbus Crew. Click on the image to watch the Columbus Crew’s video of last week’s celebration at the Ronald McDonald House.

In a year that many would, perhaps, like to forget, a few bright moments stand out. For our Ronald McDonald House, much of that brightness is the gleam of light shining off the new equipment in our Columbus Crew exercise room. For Columbus, the light comes from the shiny 2020 Major League Soccer Cup that now belongs to The Crew. After the team played its 25th and last season at MAPFRE Stadium, they were able to bring home their second MLS Cup win. That stadium will now be the site of The Crew’s practice facility as the city readies for the opening of the team’s brand new stadium downtown this coming summer.

It’s a great comeback from a major league sports franchise that almost left the city a few years back. A campaign by Crew fans to keep the Crew in Columbus worked. So it seems the Crew players & community have the same perseverance as many of our families. This year has been especially challenging. COVID-19 almost canceling the soccer season. The team managed to get a 9-1-3 record, and tough-out major injuries on some players in September & October, but winning only once in seven games. Then, when the playoffs started, eight players tested positive for COVID-19.

Nevertheless, the Columbus Crew organization was committed to making sure our families stayed as healthy as possible while staying at the House. It had been 5 years since the workout room had originally been decked out in black & gold by The Crew and supplied with new equipment. This past week’s $10,000 renovation was made possible by The Crew, MLS Works (Major League Soccer’s social responsibility platform, & Major League Soccer itself with an assist from MLS community partner, AT&T. Our own craftsmen volunteers were happy to put muscle into the assembly of much of the new equipment just before the revealing of the renewed room.

The reimagined space had a mini-celebration last Thursday – the eve of the eve of the MLS Cup game – with former MLS Cup Champion and MLS Great Frankie Hejduk, along with Crew Cat (Crew SC’s club mascot), onsite to surprise two families staying at our House. The special moment also featured virtual greetings by Crew stars Gyasi Zardes in addition to the team’s Chief Business Officer and EVP, Steve Lyons and a lunch provides by MLS Works for all families in the House. It was a fun celebration for the two families who were able to see the new improved exercise room first, even if none of the players could be there.

It was announced later that day that two more players – a couple of the team’s best – had tested positive for COVID-19 and wouldn’t be able to be in the MLS Cup. And yet, last Saturday, with all those odds against the Crew, they pulled out a 3-0 win over Seattle, the current MLS Cup holders. Before leaving the celebration, Hejduk promised a couple of families that he would bring the cup here to the House! We’re not sure if he was joking, but our families have sunglasses ready to see the sunshine reflected off that cup in person!

Photo Courtesy: Telhio Credit Union

We love our farming families and their communities. McKalynne Helmke was one of the 4-H members who sold her steer at last year’s amazing Ohio State – College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences Dean’s Charity Steer Show. But her support didn’t stop after the steer show was over. She’s continued to get the support of local businesses in Tuscarawas County and major support from Sarchione Ford Of Waynesburg in her drive to get food for families that need to stay at the Ronald McDonald House in Columbus.

Click here to read all about it in this article recently published by local publication, The Bargain Hunter.