Since opening its doors in 1981, Ronald McDonald House has offered a home away from home to the families of children undergoing treatment for cancer and other serious illnesses at Texas Medical Center institutions. Each year, thousands of children are treated in Houston for serious illnesses. Often, they travel long distances for treatment and the families’ anxiety over the child’s illness is compounded by lengthy hospital stays, months of outpatient treatment, and the expense of being away from home. Whole families may spend their days and nights in hospital lounges or hotels, removed from relatives and friends.
RMH answers the special need of these special families by offering loving, home-like environments where they can find support and share experiences with others who are also undergoing the trauma of childhood illness. The programs include:
The Holcombe House (at 1907 Holcombe Boulevard) provides a 50-bedroom home away from home. The three-story brick atrium building includes an eight station kitchen, special needs kitchen, dining room, playrooms, laundry room, outside play area, and even a one-room school. In an average year, over 16,000 nights of lodging are provided to about 700 different families who have traveled from throughout the U.S. and the world to find a cure for their children in Houston.
RMH operates a House inside Texas Children’s Hospital for families with children in the Neo-Natal Intensive Care Units. This second House offers a large kitchen and living area, a private quiet room, laundry area, and 20 sleep/nap rooms with private baths. The space is designed to give parents, a place to rest or spend the night. This RMH facility in particular, serves many Houston area families.
RMH also has two Family Rooms within TCH. One serves the inpatient section of Hematology/Oncology and the Bone Marrow Transplant section. The second Family Room serves Texas Children’s Cancer Center’s Outpatient Clinic. Both Family Rooms have areas with comfortable seating, TV/VCR, as well as a kitchenette area used by volunteers and families. These special rooms offer families and patients a much-needed respite from the typical hospital waiting areas.
In early 2007, RMH opened a House inside Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital. This 14-bedroom area offers a home away from home to families with children in the ICU. Spread over two floors, the facility has two Family Lounge areas as well as laundry facilities.
Since families pay little or nothing for the services provided, RMH is able to operate these facilities only through gifts of time and financial support. Volunteers help in all areas, and generous donations from individuals, companies, and foundations from throughout the community support the operations.
Show Produced By
