The Ronald McDonald House Charities is an iconic institution for American children. Not only do they identify with Ronald himself, but their services of providing a place for children and their families during hospital stays are such an invaluable part of every community. Imagine traveling hours with your sick child, spending weeks away from friends and family for their treatment, and there’s an organization to provide a warm bed, meals, and so much more at absolutely no cost to you. Incredible!
This holiday season, local San Antonio McDonald’s restaurants are participating in the Ronald McDonald House Charity Round Up, essentially giving customers the easy option of rounding UP their purchase at any kiosk, with the additional balance going to support the children and families that benefit from the Ronald McDonald Houses right here in our community. Issa was home sick from school yesterday, so we headed to our local McDonald’s at The Rim for a quick lunch and jaunt through the PlayPlace. Don’t worry, she was more “wanting a day home with mom” than she was “sick”, and we actually had the kid’s area almost completely to ourselves! The ordering process at the kiosk was wonderfully simple yet detailed, with the options to customize everything down to how much salt I wanted on my fries. I snagged my usual Quarter Pounder with Cheese and Issa opted for the Happy Meal chicken nuggets, of course.
Right at the end of the ordering process was when we were prompted to round up our order to donate to the Ronald McDonald House. It added just another $0.09 to our order, but you can imagine across ALL the orders at McDonald’s across the city, this will make a huge impact! Having lunch with us was Pat Bivin, Executive Director of Ronald McDonald House Charities of San Antonio, and she told me a little more about what this program means to the families she serves. For example, not many folks are aware that McDonald’s and the Ronald McDonald’s House Charities operate separately from one another, and local McDonald’s owner/operators only voluntarily contribute to their organization’s mission every year. They, however, constitute only a portion of RMHC’s donations for their annual budget, so they still rely on the generosity of the public and other donors to make their resources available to families. That’s why the new Round Up program is such an exciting opportunity for Pat and her organization. They’ll be presented to a whole new segment of San Antonian McDonald’s customers that may be willing to help.
Won’t you join them? McDonald’s across San Antonio will be participating now through the holidays, but this program will also continue after the Christmas trees have been taken down and the presents have been opened. All year long RMHC provides a safe and loving place for families with sick children, connecting them to additional resources in the community and offering much more than just a place to sleep. Rounding up your order may seem like a small gesture, but I assure you it’s anything but. I know Issa and I enjoyed our lunch date just a little more knowing that we ordered a little good alongside our Happy Meals. Bravo, McDonald’s!
XO,
A
P.S. This post was sponsored by the local owners and operators of McDonald’s of San Antonio. Don’t worry though, all opinions are my own.
P.P.S. Photography by the fantastic Stacey Olivares-Garcia of Cloverbud Photography.
