How are you giving back this holiday season?
Last night my children and I had the privilege to visit our local McDonald’s in Orange County to help kick off the launch of their nationwide Round Up program that benefits the Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC). Every time you go to your local McDonald’s you can round up your order to the nearest dollar and the proceeds will be distributed to all 365 houses across the country!
And yesterday my children and I had the opportunity to craft and create holiday cards for children staying at the Ronald McDonald House Orange County! And we even were able to decorate some cookies!
For those of you who may be unfamiliar, RMHC helps families with ill or injured children stay together and near the medical care they need at leading hospitals. One of the core RMHC programs is the Ronald McDonald House, which provides families with home-cooked meals, private bedrooms, fully equipped kitchens and laundry facilities, just steps away from the hospital so families can focus on the health of their child. They even provide donated Christmas gifts for parents to pick out for their children this time of year! I have been volunteering at my local Ronald McDonald House, San Diego for many years now so this program is very special to me. Last year I even had the opportunity to organize the gift room as one of my volunteer days!
A program of the Ronald McDonald House of Southern California, the Ronald McDonald House Orange County has provided a warm and welcoming home where children and families are able to embrace life and healing with a sense of hope, enthusiasm, courage and joy for more than 30 years. For decades, RMHCSC has ensured families with sick children are able to be together and close to the care they need, made possible in part through the change collected from generous customer donations in SoCal McDonald’s restaurants.
And here is how the Round Up program works and how you can help! As a McDonald’s costumer, you can now donate to RMHC through technology on their ordering kiosks that gives you the opportunity to Round-Up your purchase to the nearest whole dollar. The technology and the added convenience it provides for customers looking to donate to RMHC has been well received in test restaurants, with $2.2 million being raised through Round-Up for RMHC nationwide. To highlight how each donation benefits RMHC families, McDonald’s is unveiling a new “Menu of Moments”. Priceless moments are made possible with the help of McDonald’s customers when they choose to Round-Up for RMHC and keep families together when they need each other most. Even the smallest of donations can make such a big difference to families, spending time together in a ‘home-away-from-home’. For example:
-Ninety-two cents can help allow a parent to read a bedtime story to their sick child
-Forty-two cents can help provide 10-minutes for a family to sing together
-Twenty-one cents can help ensure five minutes of laughter with the entire family
And for families with children receiving medical treatment, it’s the time they spend with each other that give them the strength and support they need. So as you can see, just a couple of cents adds up and can mean quality time for a family that will help change their lives.
For any reason you don’t find yourself in a McDonald’s this holiday season, you can go to the Ronald McDonald House Charities website and find your local chapter to donate funds, supplies and items like blankets, toothbrushes, toys, etc, and or even sign up as a volunteer!
This post is sponsored but all opinions, experiences, and photos are my own!
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