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For children facing a severe medical crisis, nothing seems scarier than not having mom or dad close by for love and support. Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) understands this. This national 501(c)3 non-profit has a branch in Madison, Wisc. featuring a guest house where families of hospitalized children can stay. This “home away from home,” helps to ensure that families can stay close to their hospitalized child. Through its Madison-based guest house near American Family Children’s Hospital, Family Room at SSM Health / St. Mary’s Hospital in Madison and Mobile Unit serving Northern Illinois, RMHC serves approximately 2,000 families annually.
I and our Elevity Director of Sales, Patrick Hanifin, were honored to have Stephanie Hayden, CEO of Ronald McDonald House Charities – Madison as a guest on our podcast, Focus on Outcomes.
“Our compassionate team at RMHC is mission driven to help families focus on being present for their sick or injured child,” explained Hayden. “We make sure that they not only have a place to stay, but we also provide free home-cooked meals, laundry facilities, WiFi, community spaces to connect with others, etc. – everything they’ll need while their child is hospitalized.”
The History of Ronald McDonald House Charities
In the early 1970’s, Dr. Audrey Evans, Chief of Pediatric Oncology at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, saw the need for a place of comfort and support for families with a child in the hospital. These families often ate vending machine meals and spent nights sleeping in hospital waiting rooms as they could not afford long stays at a hotel. During this time, the daughter of a Philadelphia Eagles football player was receiving treatment for leukemia and the Eagles’ General Manager learned of Dr. Evans’ vision of a home away from home for families seeking medical treatment for their child. Through connections, the local McDonald’s restaurants agreed to donate the proceeds from the sale of shamrock shakes to help fund the first Ronald McDonald house in 1974. Today, there are more than 390 Ronald McDonald houses, worldwide.
RMHC-Madison was founded in 1993. In Madison, local McDonald’s owner/operators support about 18% of the chapter through RoundUp for RMHC, canister donations, proceeds from Happy Meals, wish list drives, annual gifts and sponsorships.
Teambuilding Through Volunteer Opportunities
Elevity is an active supporter of RMHC. In fact, our staff has volunteered at the RMHC house on several occasions. Volunteering gives a unique perspective into the mission of RMHC. For me, I gained a greater understanding of just how essential volunteers are to keep things running smoothly. And how important it is for these families to have a safe and supportive place that feels like home.
“There are both one-time and recurring opportunities available to volunteer with RMHC,” says Hayden. “We need volunteers to prepare meals, stock shelves, organize things, drive families to/from the hospital.” Community groups and workplace teams also often support RMHC by collecting pop tabs from aluminum cans or by sponsoring a Wish List drive.
RELATED: The Importance of Supporting Your Community
Digital Transformation for Nonprofits
We at Elevity, are proud to partner with RMHC-Madison as they are one of our fully managed clients. Just as RMHC-Madison approaches medical needs from a holistic perspective, we provide Managed IT services from a holistic perspective of technology management. It is our goal to ensure that RMHC-Madison is prepared for modern risks, along with vCIO strategy services to prepare for the future by aligning the organization’s technology needs to their chosen goals.
Elevity handles the layered IT security and strategy to keep RMHC-Madison moving forward. “We really appreciate our partnership with Elevity, says Hayden. “When we call, Elevity is right on it. This is especially important as we are a 24/7/365 organization.”
The work that Elevity does, helps streamline hospital referrals and keeps guest families connected with safe and reliable WiFi network connections. It is crucial that families be able to stay connected to their child’s medical providers, insurance company, friends & family back home – and many of the parents use RMHC-Madison’s facilities to work remotely.
“We have some families that are with us for weeks, months or even over a year,” says Hayden. “They can’t stop working, but if they have remote work flexibility, they can work from our house and ensure that they’re able to continue to care for their families and maintain medical coverage.”
Elevity also assists RMHC-Madison organizationally, as secure IT networks are needed for online fundraising platforms, donor databases and social media posts. “We’ve seen a lot of technology efficiencies through our partnership with Elevity,” says Hayden. “It’s allowed us to serve our guest families better.”
Focus on Outcomes – Spotlighting Impact-Driven Organizations
Searching for candid conversations with industry leaders as they uncover the outcomes of their work and the real-world impact they create? Want to learn more as Elevity shines a spotlight on organizations making a positive impact in their communities? This podcast is just for you!
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