Mission and Vision
Thinking globally, acting locally to provide resources for children and their families
The mission of Ronald McDonald House Charities© of the Coastal Empire is to create, find and support programs that directly enhance the health and well-being of children and families.
Vision
One of 386 Ronald McDonald Houses worldwide, each House is an independent non-profit, 501© (3) community organization. The Savannah House is governed by a 20-member Board of Directors and managed by a full-time staff of six. A community effort, the Ronald McDonald House’s funding comes from our local McDonald’s owner operators and events, as well as corporate, civic and individual donations as provided throughout the year.
Our House has thirteen bedrooms and operates on a waiting list most of the year. The Savannah Ronald McDonald House© provides a “home away from home” for families who have a critically ill or injured child receiving treatment at Memorial Children’s Hospital, Candler Hospital, or where needed in the Coastal Empire.
The House provides a warm, home-like atmosphere where families can sleep, eat, watch TV or just relax and most importantly spend time with each other and with other families in similar situations. Families are initially referred to the House by hospital social workers. Upon arrival, each new family undergoes a brief orientation about the House and its procedures. Each family stays in a private bedroom and is asked to make a donation of $10.00 per night (the donation rate is only about 21%). It is purely voluntary and no one is ever turned away if they are unable to make a donation. Since the House first opened its doors in 1987, over 10,000 families have been served. The house currently serves approximately 289 families each year, with 45oo family night stays. Although the average length of stay runs 17 days, some families stay much longer.
The Ronald McDonald House Family Rooms© are an outreach program of the Ronald McDonald House. Located on the third floor of Memorial’s Children’s Hospital and the fourth floor at St. Joseph’s/Candler Hospital, these comfortable hospitality suite/resource centers offer families of hospitalized children light refreshments, the use of computers, TV, laundry services, magazines and medical periodicals to read. The Family Room located on the Memorial campus (opened in March of 2013) also offers two rooms dedicated as sleeping/respite rooms while the room is opened. The Family Room provides a service to our local community, in addition to those on the waiting list for a room in our House. Most importantly, families are encouraged to simply take a much-deserved break while still remaining only steps away from their child’s bedside.
Our newest program, the Ronald McDonald Hospitality Cart, expands our support to families and their children in the pediatric departments of Children’s Hospital by offering snacks, drinks, and basic toiletries to families and children.
Last but not least, we are proud to serve approximately 2,700 children each year in Beaufort, Jasper and Hampton Counties in South Carolina, on our state-of-the-art Ronald McDonald Care Mobile©. Many of the children have never seen a dentist before their first Care Mobile visit and their smiles speak louder than words! We are able to provide preventive dental treatment and health education. The Care Mobile staff provides cleaning and examinations. The students who are treated typically range in age from 5-13. The impact we are making on the lives of these children in their dental health is invaluable and school officials have seen a drop in school absences due to dental-related problems since the Care Mobile’s debut in 2002.
