What We Do
Going to extraordinary lengths to create ordinary days.
A legitimate home away from home
What we do is simple to understand and difficult to achieve.
Our goal is to provide a home away from home for sick kids and their families while they’re in Omaha for treatment. And we mean a home. Not a “home.”
So we focus on keeping things ordinary. Normal. Sometimes even, yes, boring. We provide things like comfortable rooms with warm beds, ample closet space, and a decent-sized bathroom. Laundry facilities. A ginormous kitchen. Private food and medicine storage. Areas designed just for fun (okay, we’re not always boring) and relaxation.
We want to give our families every opportunity to relax while living through what is often a highly stressful situation. So we do whatever it takes to make it happen.
Consider Us the Made-to-Order,
One-of-a-Kind,
Double with Everything
In 1994, we opened our House with nine guest rooms. In 2000, we doubled (and then some) our capacity to 20. In 2019, we doubled down on doubling up and expanded to 40 guest rooms. In 2020, we hosted a tick under 200 families from 26 states. Those families spent an average of 45 days with us, and half were first-time guests.
Our House is truly one-of-a-kind (just like every other House you may visit). We offer a strategically implemented combination of capacity, programming, assistance, and amenities designed to meet the specific needs of the region we serve.
Our success is a direct result of the community at large [note: “at large” should not be hyphenated because it comes after community] combined with the support of our local McDonald’s franchisee group. All funding is local. It comes from local sources and it stays locally with us. And those funds are, of course, vital to our mission – it costs $120/night to host a family. And while we do ask families to contribute $25/night during their stay, no one is ever turned away due to their financial status. After all, we’re named for a fun-loving clown and not The Grinch.
Help Us Keep the Love Local
Ronald McDonald House Charities in Omaha may be named after an internationally famous big-shoed burgermeister, but our mission and funding is decidedly local.
Our funding is raised throughout the year at several RMHC events, the collection of pop can tabs (seriously, it helps pay our electric bill), and various kind-hearted corporate and individual donors from around the community.
Additional funding comes in part from McDonald’s Owners of Nebraska and Western Iowa, the regional McDonald’s franchisee group, who support us as title sponsors of our annual golf tournament, via the donation boxes at McDonald’s drive-thrus, and many assorted other forms of generosity.
It costs $120 per night to host a family. And while we suggest that each family contribute $20 towards that amount, no one is ever turned away due to financial reasons.
So, if you’d like to donate and perhaps sponsor a night, or if you’re more of the volunteering type, call us today at 402-346-9377, and we will find the best fit for you.
Benefits of Staying at the House
There is clinical research supporting that Ronald McDonald House is the best housing option for families when they are away from home and their child needs medical care. These are a few of the benefits that families receive while staying at Ronald McDonald House:
-
Support Access to Care
-
Reduce Financial Burden
-
Provide Psychological Support Keeping Families Together
-
Enhance Clinical Experience and Outcomes
-
Help Families Resume Normalcy
Our Partners & Programming
Through many amazing partnerships, we are able to provide wrap-around services for all members of the family.
Below is a list that captures many of our partners and programs.
- Meals That Heal: Under current guidelines, businesses, families, and other groups of up to six people are allowed to enter RMHC’s commercial kitchen and cook a hot meal every evening for the families. Volunteers must follow strict safety protocols, including mask wearing.
- Completely KIDS: Many of our children experience large gaps in education due to illness. Completely KIDS offers curriculum-based programming for the kids, along with programming for adults such as parenting skills or knitting.
- Omaha Therapy Arts Collaborative and Project Harmony: Created a pre-trauma support group that addresses the significant gap in much needed mental health care for the entire family of sick pediatric patients.
- Simon Says Live Better Foundation: Visits RMHC monthly to throw a birthday party celebrating all children and parents’ birthdays that month.
- Om-Pop: Offers mindful parenting tools and techniques, along with yoga poses, activities and breathing exercises for children that help with stress, anxiety, courage, resilience, and self-love.
- Capitol School of Hairstyling and Esthetics: Provides haircuts in our House salon. This provides an overall feeling of well-being to all family members staying at the House, especially those who are undergoing chemotherapy treatments.
- Huey, a community therapy dog with Paws of Friendship, and Ralphie, therapy dog in training: Provide in-person support by appointment.
- Private Tutoring: This new program pairs a retired volunteer teacher with children staying at the House. Any parent or guardian staying at the House may request this service for their child.
To learn more about the House, or to visit us and take a tour, please call us at 402-346-9377
