The House provides a compassionate home away from home for families of children facing complex and life-changing medical diagnoses and injuries. The organization is now asking the community to help keep its shelves stocked with food, cleaning supplies, and household essentials.
RMHC Dayton also operates two Family Rooms, one inside Dayton Children’s Hospital and another at Emmett’s Place at Miami Valley Hospital, which provides comfortable spaces for families to rest without leaving the hospital.
An appreciative family
For the Spurlock family, whose newborn son Archie faced life-threatening medical challenges, the House’s comforts have been invaluable. Archie was born prematurely and diagnosed with CHARGE syndrome, a complex condition affecting multiple organs and requiring several surgeries, including ones to help him breathe since he cannot breathe through his nose.
“I got a call early in the morning that Archie had an event where they needed to pull the code on him, and I was literally able to run across the street and be by his bed within 30 seconds,” said Kim, Archie’s mother. “I’m that close to him, but I can still get rest so I can be the very best mom I can be.”
After long days at the hospital, sometimes more than 14 hours, families return to the House for a warm meal, a safe place to sleep, and a sense of community.
“At the hospital, everything is so sterile,” Kim said. " Coming here, even just fresh flowers and smelling food being cooked, brought back some home feeling for me and helped me escape.”
“In the NICU, every family has their own room, and it can be isolating,” said Archie’s dad, Ben Spurlock. “Being here (at the Ronald McDonald House) and eating dinner with other families, you make these small connections and realize you aren’t alone. There are a lot of people going through similar challenges, or even more difficult ones, and you support each other. It really makes you feel like part of a larger community,”
It’s these small comforts that donations help provide. With the House serving more families than ever, the need for everyday essentials is growing.
“These items may seem small, but they lift a huge burden from families,” said executive director Rita Cyr. “When our shelves are stocked, parents don’t have to worry about where their next meal will come from and can focus their energy where it matters most, at their child’s bedside.”
RMHC Dayton urgently seeks donations of:
- Grab-and-go breakfast items
- Individually packaged snacks (chips, peanut butter crackers)
- Cake mix and icing
- Paper towels
- Paper plates and bowls
- Plastic straws
- Honey
- Hot herbal tea packets
- K-cups
- Lysol wipes (no bleach)
- Lysol spray (fresh scent)
- Individual bottles of hand soap
Donations can be dropped off 8 a.m.-8 p.m. seven days a week at RMHC Dayton, 555 Valley St. in Dayton.
They can also be purchased through the organization’s Amazon Wishlist at bit.ly/fillourpantry to be shipped directly to the House.
Other ways to help
- Another way to make a difference is by joining RMHC Dayton’s Hot Meal Program. Groups of up to 10 people can prepare a meal for the families staying at the House, setting the menu and bringing the ingredients. Cooking must be done on-site, unless prepared in a commercial kitchen.
- Prefer not to cook? You can cater a meal from a local restaurant or drop off ingredients for your favorite recipe. The RMHC Dayton team will handle preparation and serving.
For more information, visit rmhcdayton.org/get-involved.
MAKE A DIFFERENCE
Meredith Moss writes about Dayton-area nonprofit organizations and their specific needs. If your group has a wish list it would like to share with our readers, contact Meredith: meredith.moss@coxinc.com. Please include a daytime phone number and a photo that reflects your group’s mission.
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