Ronald McDonald House BC & Yukon has helped more than 25,000 families in need since opening its doors in 1983. For families facing a medical crisis it is more than just a home away from home. It’s a lifeline that allows the whole family to stay together and create core memories while reducing financial and emotional challenges.
“We’re not just providing a home for them or a place to stay,” says CEO of Ronald McDonald House (RMH) BC & Yukon, Richard Pass. “We’re providing services and everything we can to keep that family together in their time of need.”
Caregivers of a sick child are often required to put their jobs on hold and, if they live outside the Lower Mainland, move out of their homes in order to access the life-saving care their child needs. RMH BC & Yukon helps to alleviate those financial burdens, which can take an estimated 10-15 years to recover from.
Emotional burdens are also a concern; parents of chronically ill children are 75 per cent more likely to have depression and 40 per cent more likely to have anxiety than parents of healthy children. RMH BC & Yukon fosters mental health through programs like music, pet and art therapy, massage, yoga and fitness.
“The funds that are raised for our annual operations really go to provide those services, food for the families, and that type of thing,” Pass adds. “In the current House and Family Room, we need to raise just under $7 million a year to operate.”
This year, RMH BC & Yukon launched its RMH United campaign to raise awareness and call for donations to support its mission. The idea is to promote the concept of team and encourage support from all community team members as these families face the challenges ahead.
“There are different roles on the team, everyone has a different capacity,” Pass says. “There are different levels of play and different specialties that support the child and the family. We really want to unite everyone who wants to be a supporter around that team concept.”
In partnership with RMH BC & Yukon, we take a look at some of the families this team has recently supported.
The Van Damme Family
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Ladysmith, BC
Life for the Van Damme Family changed overnight when Caroline and Mike suddenly discovered their six-year-old son, Connor, had cancer. They were told they needed to fly to Vancouver immediately.
“We hadn’t heard much about RMH aside from seeing a few commercials about how it’s for families to stay close to their sick kids,” Caroline says. “But you never think it’s going to be your family.”
She doesn’t know what they would have done without the House. It would have been costly for the family of four (including their eight-year-old son Mark) to rent a place, or tight on space if they had found someone else to stay with.
“There’s also a community here,” she adds. “The boys have met a couple of friends and we have met a lot of people from the Island. Sometimes we even have mutual friends back home! It makes you feel less alone when you know somebody else is going through the same thing… The House has really helped us make this past year feel normal for Connor.”
The Roen Family
West Kelowna, BC
Norm and Mei Roen have stayed at the House several times since their youngest daughter, Gigha, 16, was first diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. Their most recent stay was 268 nights.
“Our family has been split into two teams,” explains Mei. “Myself and Gigha staying at the House, while my husband and older daughter Sheena stay home for work and school. They come to visit every two weeks when they can.”
Mei previously heard good things about RMH but was still surprised by its wellness programs, gardens and the community.
“When we first found out Gigha had cancer we were so scared,” she says. “She was so worried about losing her hair, until we came here and she saw other kids her age who were going through the same thing. Other families could share their experiences with us and help us.”
She adds that most of the time Gigha is happy at RMH and the friends they’ve met have been instrumental in their journey.
“People always have respect for each other in here,” she says. “There is some reason why we are here, we won’t know until later. What we learn from here, we will share with my friends, and if people need help, we will share our experience.”
The Schmidt Family
Abbotsford, BC
Lindsey and Karlene Schmidt knew about the House from commercials and previous donations that Lindsey’s family had made. But when their 16-year-old daughter Kaelyn was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia in January 2023, they spent 196 nights at the House.
“After five years she should be cancer-free, but during the first six-to-seven months, staying close to the hospital made a big difference to us,” says Karlene. “We were headed into the unknown, it was scary and unsettling, but eventually, we knew we were going to be okay.”
The disease took a toll on the family as they depended on one another for support during that initial phase of Kaelyn’s treatment. The House enabled them to offer that support.
“The House is a warm and welcoming place and there’s no judgement,” Karlene says. “People understand there are good days and bad days, so we were all aware of one another’s ups and downs… we connected with so many families, helping each other whenever we could.”
The provincially mandated charity serves up to 2,000 families at a time from more than 200 communities via its 73-bedroom House and its four-bedroom Family Room. Across Canada, one in four families has either stayed at a Ronald McDonald House or a Family Room, or knows someone who has.
“We’re fully occupied 100 per cent of the time,” Pass says, adding that in addition to serving BC, “Ninety-nine per cent of families from the Yukon are flown here when their children need treatment.”
Read more: What it’s like to stay at Vancouver Ronald McDonald House when your child is sick
Across BC and Yukon there are an estimated 90,000 children who visit BC Children’s and BC Women’s Hospital each year. As a result, RMH BC & Yukon has to turn away more than 500 families per year. It is hoping to address that need by opening a second long-term stay house adjacent to the existing House in Vancouver and an additional Family Room at Royal Inland Hospital in Kamloops.
“If you’re in Vancouver, coming to visit the House is a wonderful thing to do,” Pass says. “Then you can actually see and interact, or find ways to volunteer. See what we do and learn what really happens here. It’s always encouraged.”
To support current needs, businesses and individuals can make donations or purchase official merchandise through the RMH United campaign website.