CONGRATULATIONS ON FINDING THE DONATION DOLLAR AND SUPPORTING RONALD MCDONALD HOUSE CHARITIES SYDNEY WITH YOUR SPECIAL DONATION DOLLAR!
Did you know? For every $1 donated, your donation actually represents $3.60 in economic and social value which is created by RMHC Sydney for families and the community, thanks to your support!
YOUR IMPACT
Your support provides much more than just a place to sleep
With your support, we can provide holistic support to families throughout their child’s recovery with illness or injury. We are there for families to keep them connected and focus on the child’s recovery through the House and our Family Rooms.
With your support, we continue to support families in between and after hospital stays such as our Learning Program.
With your support:
- Sick children experience an improved clinical journey as a result of physical and emotional proximity to the family. Our programs enable a family-centred approach to caring for sick children from the time they are in hospital to transitioning back to school and everyday life.
- Parents and family members feel better connected and less stressed, improving their capacity to focus on supporting their child through treatment.
- Hospitals experience a reduced mental load and save on resources. Our program have become a vital part of the hospital infrastructure. Hospital staff can discharge patients to a nearby location and are therefore able to serve more people. Hospital staff also experience reduced mental load and are better able to focus on clinical outcomes when families are well rested and less stressed.
- Education system avoids some of the costs associated with students who miss significant periods of school. Our Learning Program helps government and schools avoid the cost of students repeating school, and avoid the lifetime costs associated with students not completing school.
- RMHC Sydney has the trust and goodwill of the community, which are essential for sustainable operations. RMHC has been consistently rated as one of the most trusted charities in Australia.
- We are able to have volunteers and tutors able to assist in the delivery of our Programs. Their work primarily benefits families, but also provides the volunteers and tutors themselves with a sense of purpose and job satisfaction.
No matter how big or small your donation is, we can continue to keep families close when they are facing the most difficult time of their lives.
Thank you for making a difference for our seriously ill children and their families.
Bobbi's story
Stephen and his daughter Ashleigh have been staying at RMHCS for more than six months, whilst their daughter and sister, who recently turned 3-years-old Robyn (Bobbi) is receiving treatment for a brain tumour.
During Bobbi's treatment, which is a long and difficult road for little Bobbi and emotionally and physically draining for Stephen and Ashleigh, they have been living away from home at Ronald McDonald House in Randwick, in one of their 4 isolation units (a small self-contained one-bedroom unit with a courtyard).
During their stay they have taken the time to see the positives in what has bought them together.
“More than anything, we have the time to enjoy each other’s company,” said Ashleigh. “I haven’t spent this much time with my dad since I was 15 as I was either working, studying or going out.
Bobbi is such a good baby despite what she is going through and this experience has given us lots of quality time together that we might not have otherwise had. We have an influence on the development of Bobbi every day and all that she learns comes from us. When I’m cooking pasta, I give her a little pot and she puts the pasta, salt and a little bit of water in it and stirs it just like me.”
When I peeked in their unit there was a cubby house made of blankets and chairs and little Bobbi had her own mini dustpan and broom and wanted to help her dad with cleaning the house. “We have created our own routine. I take Bobbi for a walk in her pram as her illness means she is not strong enough to walk and I do a few handyman things here and there when Bobbi is sleeping,” said Stephen.
“Day sleeps with the baby are the best! I never had the time to do that at home. I’m also reading those books that have sat on my bookshelf for so long,” added Ashleigh.
When asked how they keep a 3-year-old entertained in a small area, Steve and Ashleigh said that they have gone back to learning and singing all of the nursery rhymes, play dress ups, look through photos and videos (like all 3 year-olds, Bobbi loves to see images of herself), paints their nails, dance around the house, build cubby houses, involve Bobbi in doing things around the house and just sit on the floor together and play.
This is not what they wanted for little Bobbi, but Steve and Ashleigh make the most of the situation they are in and look for the positives in the time that they get to spend with each other and Bobbi and for the community they have created at the House.
Today, our charity is experiencing a great time of need, with a significant reduction in funding due to the need to cancel many of our face to face fundraising events and a significantly impacted economy.
Our families need you, now more than ever. Will you give a gift today so we can continue to keep our families safe and connected during this critical time and the months and years to come? If you can spare even a small gift, you will be ensuring more families like Bobbi’s keep close together during tough times.
Please donate today
