A group from the Oregon Farm Bureau visited both Portland houses on Monday to donate hundreds of dollars worth of food to the Ronald McDonald House. The visit was part of Food Check-Out Week, an annual effort by the Farm Bureau to show shoppers how they can stretch their grocery dollars while still putting nutritious meals on the table. The donation will help families at the Ronald McDonald House save money on food with children in the hospital, as well as help those families who have had to travel at short notice to be at RMHC. Thank you to everyone at the Oregon Farm Bureau who took part!
Our playroom at the East House has another addition to the dress-up closet. Lovingshop donated this colorful, handmade tutu for little girls who want to be ballerina’s, like Katherine below. The tutu came via a recommendation from a past guest, Teresa Kennedy, who knew that the tutu would get plenty of use at the Ronald McDonald House. You can shop Lovingshop for more handmade Tutu’s and other merchandise.
Jesuit High School basketball star Kyle Wiltjer visited the Ronald McDonald House this week before he heads to Chicago later this spring to play in the McDonald’s All-American basketball game, featuring some of the best hoops players in the country. Kyle has already committed to play in college at Kentucky. He toured the house with family and friends, and learned more about how McDonald’s supports RMHC.
Happy Valentine’s Day from all of us at Ronald McDonald House Charities of Oregon and Southwest Washington. We’re happy to report that Genesis – the three year old girl featured on our Valentine’s Card – went home on January 27 after more than two months at the West House, feeling great!
See more photos from our Valentine’s Day photo shoot with Genesis:
Congratulations to our friends at Geranium Lake Flowers, whose owner Kim Foren appeared on NBC’s Today Show for a special segment on Valentine’s flowers yesterday! Geranium Lake provides flowers for all RMHC events – including the beautiful centerpieces at our annual Hearts & Hands Auction. They also donate leftover stock to the Houses, for families to make bouquets that they can take to the hospital.
The Tooth Taxi parked outside the State Capital in Salem last Friday as part of the National Give Kids a Smile Day, offering treatment to children from the local Salem Boys & Girls Club, and providing information to civic and business leaders about the oral health care challenges faced by Oregon children. The Tooth Taxi is operated by the Dental Foundation of Oregon, which received a Grant award for $10,000 from Ronald McDonald House Charities of Oregon and Southwest Washington for the operation of the state of the art mobile dental van. The Tooth Taxi travels the state serving Oregon children, and last year provided oral health care to more than 4,000 kids.
Thank you to everyone who volunteered Saturday at the annual Clark County Children’s Dental Health Day. Dentists, hygienists, and staff gave up their Saturday to provide free oral health care to children in Southwest Washington. The event was organized by the Clark County Dental Society, and hosted at the Clark College Dental Clinic. Ronald McDonald House Charities of Oregon and Southwest Washington supported the event with funding from our Outreach grant program.
