Few things are more painful for a family than a sick child. But imagine, on top of that, sleeping for days, weeks or months in waiting room chairs or your car, unable to take a shower and fix yourself breakfast because you are hours or even days from your home. This is the reality that many parents face because they simply cannot afford hotel bills in addition to the often crippling cost of medical care for their child.
Thankfully, the Ronald McDonald House offers a glimmer of hope for these families. At the house, parents who are far from home can get comfortable beds, bathrooms and hot meals each evening, completely free of charge, allowing them to be refreshed and recharged to devote all their energy and resources to their child’s battle for health.
Janell Mason, Executive Director, and Emily Piechocki, Development Director of Ronald McDonald House Little Rock, are two of the people responsible for keeping the house’s doors open, and together, they are an impressive duo. Every year, the two raise the money needed to keep the house operational and, for the last three years, have run a monumental capital campaign to secure the funds necessary to build a much needed larger and more modern house.
On the eve of the opening of the new house, a palpably ecstatic Janell and Emily share with us the highs and lows of House life.
Why did you need a new house? What type of state was the old house in?
| Emily: | The old building was 36 years old, and parts of the house were over 100 years old. The biggest issue for us was having adequate space for the families. We didn’t have private bathrooms. Our dining room only held 18, yet our supper club that we hold every night is for 65, so people had to eat in shifts. It was pretty crowded, and it served as our only community space for any kind of celebrations. We try to keep life for our families as normal as possible, so we have holiday celebrations in that room and birthday parties. And our kitchen certainly needed to be updated. |
| Janell: | I think that the campaign speaks to the invaluable role the house plays. This house has helped so many families over the years — more than 30,000 — and our families have been nothing but grateful. But it has definitely been well loved and well worn, so it’s just time for us to grow. Up until now, our rooms have been pretty small and really couldn’t accommodate more than two or three people comfortably. We wanted to be able to provide more gathering space and larger bedrooms so more family members could come and be together when the child heals. The new house will have suites in the bedrooms; there will be a bed and a bathroom and a private living area with a sleeper sofa, almost an apartment of sorts, so the family can stay together and heal together. |
Do the families cook their own meals?
| Janell: | Normally they will, but we also have a supper club who can cook for them. One of the things we wanted families to do is to make the house their home away from home, so if cooking gives them comfort, then they are welcome because we have plenty of kitchen space for them. But sometimes after a rough day, the last thing a family wants to do is cook, and that’s where the supper club comes in. |
What is the supper club?
| Janell: | It’s a community group that comes every night and prepares dinner for our families. A lot of groups that we have coming in chose a set night each week. Emmanuel Baptist actually cooks every Wednesday night and has for many years. The supper club donates the food, so that is a huge saving on our operating budget |
So, every night there’s a donated meal for 60 people or so?
| Emily: | Yes, correct. And if for some reason we don’t have a volunteer group, which happens occasionally, we have a couple of volunteers that come and prepare the food. However, the house will foot the cost of that evening meal, which there really isn’t a budget for, so we are very grateful to the volunteer groups that come. |
Where do most of your clients tend to come from?
| Emily: | They come from all over our state. About 50% of our families come from northwest Arkansas. We have families that come from out of state, and we have had international families as well. |
| Janell: | As far as service, it’s a misconception that we are only for Arkansas Children’s Hospital (ACH). We also help families from Baptist Hospital other hospitals as well. |
Since you decided three years ago that you needed a new house, what have the last three years been like?
| Janell: | Well, it’s really been exciting and incredible at times. Of course, the campaign was great because it’s given us the opportunity to introduce our project to people in our community who really weren’t aware of it. |
Has it been a battle to source the funding that you needed?
| Janell: | We started with a $1,000,000 gift from the McDonald’s owner operators here in central Arkansas, which gave us a good start. There would be times when Emily and I were stuck on a number for a few months, and we just thought we would never get to the next target number. |
| Emily: | And then the next thing you know, we get eight gifts at once, and we have raised $1,000,000 in a week. |
How did you keep each other motivated when you were stuck at a number for several weeks?
| Emily: | If I was on a low day, Janell would be on a high day and vice versa, so we kind of balanced each other out. We were like, “We can do it, we can do it” (laughs). If you say it enough you can believe it to be true. |
| Janell: | I’ve always said that we will raise that money. There was no other option in our book. |
In the end, what was the amount that you raised?
| Janell: | We ended up raising $8.9 million, which was above our goal of $8.7 million. |
| Emily: | Which is good because we anticipate that our new operating budget will increase by a minimum of $300,000 a year, and we did not build that annual operating increase into our capital campaign, so we’ve still got a tough road ahead to continue to increase our annual funds to keep this house operational. We are very grateful to have been extra successful in our capital campaign because it will help towards the extra high goal needed for next year. |
What is the involvement of McDonald’s for them to bear the name of your charity?
| Janell: |
Ronald McDonald actually helped start our charity in Philadelphia in 1974, and it was a partnership between the Philadelphia Eagles (football team) and Ray Kroc (the legendary businessman and philanthropist who helped the McDonald brothers build McDonald’s into the mega brand it is today). This partnership wanted to start a fundraiser at McDonald’s to build the concept of a “home away from home” for families with sick children. So, McDonald’s decided that they were going to do a one-time thing in the Philadelphia area selling milkshakes to raise money for the first house. Well, they ended up raising $100,000, which was more than enough to buy the first house, and then the other houses and markets started to adopt the fundraiser. Now, there are more than 360 houses worldwide. The relationship between McDonald’s and the houses in each market is a little bit different on a local level. Here in Little Rock, McDonald’s is very supportive and serve as the presenting sponsor at our two main events: the Chocolate Fantasy Ball and the annual golf tournament. Many of the operators volunteer their time and additional donations. We actually just had an operator drop off supplies yesterday, so they are very involved, but they can’t do it all. I mean, we need $1.1 million dollars annually for this house, and while their commitment is substantial, we still need to raise about 80% of our funds each year. |
| Emily: | And with the new house, our budget will be about $1.5 million. |
| Janell: | Some of the funding that we get from McDonald’s actually comes from the customers through the donation box in the restaurants. Customers can go in and donate on any day of the year, and 100% of that money goes to us. |
“The Ronald McDonald House has been such a blessing for us. Just knowing we can be this close to our son while he’s in the hospital has lifted a tremendous stress. Everyone staying at the house has a similar story. Being there has given us a support system, from the families who also stay there to the staff and volunteers. We are very thankful for the opportunity to stay at the Ronald McDonald House in Little Rock.”
— Kristina and Clint Norwood
Tell me more about your main fundraisers.
| Janell: | We have the Chocolate Fantasy Ball, which is our valentine’s gala. It’s pretty incredible because it’s not only a fun way to give back, but it’s also a fun way to celebrate with your sweetie on February the 11th next year. It’s a black-tie affair, and the 2017 event is going to have a very unique raffle, so we are really excited. People can buy a key for $100, and there will be a dream closet for the girls and a dream cellar for the guys. We also have a golf tournament that’s well established. We just finished that and had a record year. Those two events historically bring about $350,000 combined. |
| Emily: | This year, we hope to end up close to $500,000 or a little over. |
Are there families that have touched your heart during your experience with the house?
| Janell: |
Yes, one of the great things about Ronald McDonald House is that families cope better when they stay at this house because they gain support from other families. You and I might have children in two different situations, but your situation might be much graver than mine, and I end up feeling like I can support you or vice versa, so that’s really special for our families. Lately, it seems like we have had a lot of twins, with one baby at the house and one baby in the hospital if they are born early, so it’s really cute when they bring their little chubby babies back later on. I know one of the children that really touched me several years ago was a little girl named Iyana, and she was here about a year and a half. |
| Emily: | Her family was from Louisiana, and Iyana was at the house quite a bit because she would only have treatment for an hour or two a day, so the rest of the time she would be here, visiting and helping us work in the office and always making her own entertainment. She stole everyone’s hearts around here. She would have loved to see what the new house would have been like. |
| Janell: | All the families are precious, and it makes us want to make a difference for them. |
What’s the biggest lesson that you have learned personally?
| Janell: |
We all think we have problems, then we walk through this door, and it’s a big reality check. My tagline on my personal email is “make today count,” and this is a perfect example of that. We are given today, and the time we spend with the families here helps our day feel fulfilled because we never know what they are dealing with. We have a lot of happy times here. We also have families who lose their child, and in those difficult moments, we give them a specially made wind chime with the child’s name inscribed just so they will always have a little piece of our love with them. |
| Emily: | We had a time when a little boy came here for a cochlear implant so he could hear for the first time, and it was truly amazing to watch that. He was a little bit overwhelmed at first, but after a day or two, he was so happy. You could just tell that a light was lit up inside. It was a whole new world for him. I remember the family had so many happy tears; they were so grateful and happy. |
| Janell: |
We are beyond grateful to all our donors who have given so generously to make this new house a reality for our children and families. The generosity of our donors enables Ronald McDonald House to keep families together during the most difficult time in their lives. The support from individuals, community groups, corporations and foundations makes all the difference. It helps us provide families with the basic comforts of home for free so that they are not burdened with hotel fees in addition to medical costs. We also provide a respite from the hospital and a place for siblings to stay with their parents. It enables families to focus on what matters most, their sick child. |
Chocolate Fantasy Ball
Feb. 11
Statehouse Convention Center Wally Allen Ballroom
RMHCLittleRock.org