A big House needs big hearts

Volunteering at the Columbus Ronald McDonald House takes many forms. The ways to give time are many and varied; with 137 guest rooms, time and talent are always a welcome donation!

When people think about RMHC Volunteers, they often picture volunteers inside the House, restocking rooms or creating meals for our families. Our event volunteers are a very important role too, although you won’t necessarily see them inside the House.

Every year we have numerous special events that raise funds so the Columbus RMH can continue to operate and serve families. Without our event volunteers, these special event would not be possible. Event volunteering is a unique way to give time. Event volunteers often don’t step foot into the Columbus Ronald McDonald House. They support families by selling raffle tickets, serving drinks, speaking on behalf of RMHC and supporting various community fundraisers and event. The people who volunteer at events understand that even though they are not directly interacting with the families and children at Ronald McDonald House, the work and time they are donating is just as important.

If you are considering donating your time to the Ronald McDonald House, please consider becoming an event volunteer. Our opportunities are varied and there’s an event for everyone.

Thank you to all of our volunteers, both in and outside the House, for working to make Ronald McDonald House Charities of Central Ohio a home-away-from-home.

-Kate Ziegler

Director, Volunteer Program

All of the above

The term “Community Service” has many meanings. For some people it’s about giving back to a community they call home. For others it’s a great way to meet new people. And sometimes it’s about feeling like you are part of something bigger than yourself. But for Red Shoe Society members “Community Service” is about all of the above.

For those of you that don’t know, The Red Shoe Society is a group of professionals, between the ages of 25-45, that come together for one common mission; serving children and families at The Ronald McDonald House. These young people come from varying professions and backgrounds across central Ohio. They volunteer their time making breakfast for families on Saturday mornings. They host fundraisers that help provide more nights of rest to families; including the first ever Red Shoe Run on August 1^st to kick off a full month of service activities and fundraisers. And when they aren’t serving families and raising money, they find time to network and get to know one another better. And that’s where my story really begins.

You see as I’ve built up and managed The Red Shoe Society over my past 8 years at the House, I’ve seen how these young people come together. They find a common bond in their volunteer work that creates life-long friendships and sometimes even more. This past weekend, I was honored to celebrate with two of our Red Shoe members as they said their wedding vows to one another. And I got to watch as another Red Shoe member officiated their wedding ceremony. And as two other Red Shoe members presented readings that captured the love that brought them together. And as countless other Red Shoe members made the long drive to Hilton Head to celebrate with them. It was our very first Red Shoe wedding.

That’s what The Red Shoe Society does. It takes a common bond, The Ronald McDonald House, and turns the least likely of people into forever friends. It’s through the time spent providing for others that one can really see the good in another. Our Red Shoe Members have found friendship in each other and a bond that grows with every single cracked egg, dollar raised, and life touched.

If you are between the ages of 25-45 and think “Community Service” is about all of the above, email me at Jamie.foltz@rmhc-centralohio.org and you too can be on your way to building forever friendships while making a meaningful impact on people who need it the most.

Thank You for Your Help

Dear Ronald McDonald House Volunteers and Staff,

The Columbus Ronald McDonald House

My husband and I would like to say thank you from the bottom of our hearts! Our baby, Clay, was transferred here very unexpectedly after being born prematurely. We have now spent almost a month at Nationwide Children’s Hospital as our son has grown and learned how to eat. We would not have been able to manage this without your help! We live two hours away and have a three year old son at home. While my husband has stayed home with our son, it has been a comfort knowing I had somewhere safe to stay that is so close to the hospital. This has allowed me to watch over our baby and be involved in his care. Everything from the room to the services you provide has went above and beyond. This is truly a wonderful place! Thank you all for being so good to our family!

Sincerely,

The Boggs Family

Why I Joined Team RMHC for the Cap City Half Marathon

By Katie Cannon, Team RMHC Member

Katie (left) with Rachel at the Cap City Half-Marathon

I promised myself that I would run a half marathon before I turned 50. Being that my longest run ever was 4 miles, this truly would be a major accomplishment for me.

I am not a runner. In fact, I hate to run. When I saw that the Columbus Ronald McDonald House had a fundraising team for the half marathon, I joined immediately. Running for RMHC was the incentive I needed to keep on training, especially because I have personally witnessed why the Columbus Ronald McDonald House is a necessity for families at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. I couldn’t give up on myself because I would then be giving up on the families that needed the RMH!

My oldest child, Rachel, was born on December 4^th, 1991, with a very serious heart defect. Her first three months of life and many, many future days and weeks were spent in Nationwide Children’s Hospital.

During this stressful time, my ex-husband and I had the luxury of our child being hospitalized in the city in which we actually lived. We could go home every night to our own bed; our families kept our fridge stocked with food, and we never lacked for visitors to sit with us during the scariest times ever of our whole lives!

I couldn’t even imagine dealing with a Rachel’s hospitalization, far from our own home and support system. Yet I met so many parents that were doing exactly that and remaining strong because of the Ronald McDonald House. Until my time with Rachel at Children’s, I just thought the Ronald McDonald House was basically a hotel that parents could stay in for a very small cost. Wow, was I ever wrong!

The Ronald McDonald House does provide the hotel-type rooms at very little or no costs. However, it provides so much more. RMHC families get a true family to go home to every night by just walking across the street, instead of driving hours to their far away homes. There are home cooked meals waiting every night. Most importantly, because of volunteers, there is a built in support system, to help through those very long and scary times.

Thank you to RMHC of Central Ohio! I am so proud to have helped this great cause! I thank you for being the incentive to check “run a half marathon before you are 50” off of the bucket list!

To learn more about Team RMHC, click here.