by Alan Jacques
alan@limerickpost.ie
MCDONALD’S restaurants’ across Limerick will show their support this Christmas for a charity that provides accommodation for families with seriously ill children on the grounds of Our Lady’s Hospital in Dublin.
Over the past nine years, 142 families in Limerick have benefited from the important resource that the Ronald McDonald House Charity (RMHC) provide, in funding and operating the Crumlin facility. The charity have now launched McHappy Day, its national fundraising drive for 2013.
McHappy Day will take place this Saturday, November 30. McDonald’s restaurants of Ireland and McDonald’s owner operators nationwide are showing their support for the charity with €1 being donated from every Big Mac sold on the day throughout the 84 McDonald’s restaurants nationwide. RMHC are also selling festive Santa hats in McDonald’s restaurants now until December 11. All proceeds raised will go to The Ronald McDonald House.
Volunteer CEO of the charity, Marian Carroll, said: “McHappy Day is one of RMHC’s most important annual fundraisers. We receive no government funding, relying solely on support of the public and fundraising initiatives to keep this important facility in operation.”
The Ronald McDonald House opened in 2004. The house has a total of 20 en-suite family bedrooms in two separate buildings, each of which is adjacent to the Our Lady’s Hospital, Crumlin. The original building has 16 bedrooms and the second building which opened in March 2010, has four bedrooms. Each bedroom has a direct telephone line so parents can be quickly and easily connected to the hospital. Each room can accommodate up to four family members at a time.
With running costs of €300,000 a year, the charity receives no funding or financial support from either the hospital or the Government and relies on fundraising and donations to be able to continue to provide a ‘home away from home’ for over 2,445 families to date from across Ireland.
