Neighbor to Mott Children’s Hospital, salvation to families prevailing through child sickness, and home to those in need, the Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) of Ann Arbor provides unwavering compassion to all patients. Delivering the supplies donated from Sept. 24 to Oct. 24 in polypropylene bags, Clague’s student council took an expedition to the cause itself on Nov. 8.
“October is National Children’s Health month, and we ran a supplies drive for the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Ann Arbor (which is the largest location in the state, with plans to expand!),” English Language Arts teacher and advisor of student council Taylor Cheyenne said. “We were able to deliver the supplies, get a tour of the facility, learn a ton of info[rmation] about the history of the Ronald McDonald Houses — how they are funded, and why we should purchase those yearly Shamrock Shakes!”
Celebrating their 50th anniversary, the “home away from home” flourished in 1974. When a Philadelphia Eagles football player’s daughter was weathering leukemia, the RMHC was called to its debut as a measure of support. Since then, the act of sympathy has dispersed into 370 satellite locations across 62 countries.
Within Michigan, the largest RMHC with 43 rooms is encircled by the Nichols Arboretum, Mott Children’s hospital, and a cordial statue of Ronald McDonald himself. To whoever is at RMHC’s doorstep — the guardians, the siblings, the relatives, the patient — generosity is an unlimited currency.
“I liked how we designed blankets for the families,” eighth grader and attendee of the field trip Jeremiah Esteves said. “I learned that families can go to RMHC for a place to stay — it was really cool, I liked it.”
The non-profit organization is diligent in its task of inviting families to call RHMC “home”: fairy doors decorating a wall, cozy communal areas, a room dedicated to gaming festivities, and a superhero cape gifted to siblings during their time spent there, which can whiplash between 29 and 423 days.
“What stood out to me was there was a hospital near [where] the parents can stay [at],” eighth grader and participant of the field trip Yesui Zolboo said, “which is really nice and helpful to their families. [I learned about] helping people and how to help.”
Student council members were given a tour of the facility and a glimpse into how the staff accommodate families who are hauling through the testing circumstances that hypoplastic left heart syndrome, leukemia, or any adolescent/infant condition may render. During the field trip, fleece tie blankets were also webbed together by student council, which had assortments of plaid, checkers, and chromatic patterns.
“We ended our experience with doing a service project of making tie blankets,” Taylor said. “The staff all remarked how well-behaved the students were! . . . they had a great time, asked inquisitive questions and definitely upheld our Cougar Pride!”
