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Meeting Unique Local
Needs for Families

Ronald McDonald House is committed to addressing family needs all along their child’s healthcare journey, and sometimes that means creating programs and services for the unique needs of families in their communities. To illustrate this, check out some unique Ronald McDonald House Local Programs in Europe:
Ronald McDonald House Spain has been collaborating with their hospital partner since 2019 to help supply and distribute donated breast milk. Babies being treated in local neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) throughout Madrid needed breast milk. New mothers at home were willing to donate breast milk but were not always able to deliver the milk safely or in a timely manner.
Ronald McDonald House Spain found a solution by partnering with the regional breast milk bank in Madrid to create a unique breast milk collection service. The chapter’s MilkTruck has not only helped meet the demand for breast milk in local NICUs, but the program has become the primary local means of collecting donated breast milk across Madrid. Over 2,000 families in the Madrid region have been impacted to date!
Research shows that exercise’s ability to enhance mood and decrease stress tendencies is a valuable way to promote healing for families with children who are seriously ill. After receiving generous donation of 15,000 euros, Ronald McDonald House Sweden purchased electric bicycles for families to use at five Ronald McDonald House programs across the country.
“The e-bikes are incredibly appreciated,” said Lotta Sterning from the Ronald McDonald House Uppsala. “Whether families are using them to make a quick grocery run or just for a fun trip around our beautiful outdoor spaces, they’re great for exercising and clearing the head after long, stressful days of treatment.”
Families that have endured a medical crisis or have a child that needs a lot of care at home are mostly exhausted. Most would benefit from a short holiday to retrieve energy and have some quality family time. But so often, they can’t find the right place to go, because few hotels or vacation homes are equipped to accommodate children with special medical needs.
That is why Ronald McDonald House Netherlands offers three different “Holiday Houses” to families after a child’s long-term hospital stay.
A vacation at a Holiday House is a breath of fresh air for the whole family. Families stay for up to a week in an apartment with their own kitchen, bedrooms, and living areas. All are on the ground floor, and all are specially equipped for their children’s needs.
Since there are multiple apartments in each Holiday House, staff and volunteers make sure everything runs smoothly. And if families want to engage with each other, there are even communal spaces to do that. In 2022, 631 families stayed almost 4,000 nights at these special Holiday Houses – giving families a place to disconnect from their ‘normal’ life stresses, restore their energy and feel seen and understood.
“The Kindervallei Holiday Home is a place where everyone can be themselves. What a calm and relaxed feeling that gives us parents” – Anke, Ronald McDonald House mom
The Ronald McDonald House commitment to caring for families has grown exponentially since 1974. Today, with over 1,000 programs and services in 62 countries and regions, the unique, locally focused approach embodied by Chapters like Spain, Sweden and the Netherlands represent the many unique ways Ronald McDonald House helps strengthen families and promote healing worldwide.
Bookmark Ronald McDonald House.org/Our History to read even more stories of positive Ronald McDonald House impact over the past 50 years.