Bear Care at Ronald McDonald House

At The Amaz!ng Meeting 7, Skeptilove auctioned off two magician teddy bears donated by Alison Smith. They brought in over $300, and this project's charity of choice should be Ronald McDonald House, an organization sponsored by McDonald's that houses families while their children are undergoing medical procedures.

Volunteer superhero Paul Turner spearheaded the effort, and submitted this report:

I just came back from the Ronald McDonald House dinner, it was truly great! After we served dinner we sat down and ate with the residents. For me this was the best part mainly because I really like to talk to children. There were about 13 children and five adults residents. Here's who attended.

Angele Grace, her and her friend Tim took care of the bread and the salad. As well as some Trader Joe's cookies that were highly coveted by the children. Angele's help was indispensable, Tim made some incredible garlic bread.

CJ Sevilla, another great help, provided some additional bread along with three large angel food cakes for dessert.

Alex and Kelli Jacobsen, Alex was a great help and Kelli was loved by the children and the teenage girls. They were both incredibly helpful and excellent ambassadors.

Here's the rundown on dinner: I bought large entrées from Buca di Beppo. I also purchased large quantities of hot dogs and hotdog buns and condiments, along with 50 small bags of potato chips. According to the coordinator, the kids there are crazy about hotdogs, who am I to deny them. Everyone who showed up donated the food that they brought. I also wrote Ronald McDonald House a check for $270 and put this money towards a program they have their called "Share a Night." Normally, Ronald McDonald House ask for $10 a night per family. This program covers this for families who cannot afford it.

Everyone including the children pitched in and helped with putting food away and cleaning up the kitchen. After this Marvella Baca, gave us a tour of the facility. I was very impressed with the way the staff works so hard to provide a caring environment to help these families at a very difficult time in her life. All of us agreed that we will come back and volunteer, as a matter of fact I would like to organize a cookout perhaps sometime in early October when it's a little bit cooler in the evenings.

They also do volunteer services for the hospital such as providing toys games and other distractions for children who are undergoing medical treatment or physical therapy. There is also a program five days a week where they put together lunches for children in the hospital.

Thank you so much for organizing a great experience.

Paul

Thanks so much to Paul and everyone for creating such a wonderful event. Ronald McDonald houses are located all over the world, and there may be one in your area. If you'd like to help out, there is information at the link at the beginning of this article.