A Note from the PRESIDENT Greetings all, Is this year just crazy, or what? First and foremost, to our volunteers, we miss you so much. You are the heart and soul of our organization, and we miss not having you in our Houses and Family Rooms or hearing of your incredible acts of kindness. While we have been able to host virtual committee meetings, it is just not the same. Back in April, when things first “hit the fan,” I was on a text exchange with some of our RMH Friends; at the same time, I was on a text chain with our Executive Committee. Both groups asked me the same question. “Are we going to be okay?” My response quickly followed. “Are you kidding? We are the Ronald McDonald House. Don’t ever doubt us!” I feel the same way today more than ever, thanks to friends like you. What has taken place over the last six months has been nothing short of spectacular. When we had to shut down our Meals from the Heart program, we asked our community to send in dinners or funds to keep it going. The response was incredible! We had one great Friend of the House send in $10,000 to support the program. We had another anonymous donor (I hate that I don’t know who it was) send in $50,000 to support the program. We had many other supporters send in money for meals or offer to cover a meal by calling their favorite restaurant and have them deliver meals to the Houses. There was even a new company to St. Louis, Everstream, who called and said, “We are going to send dinner to the Park Avenue House every night during April.” Unbelievable! As I stated in our previous newsletter, we began reaching out to past Sponsor-A-Family Cornerstone Members, asking if they would make a similar contribution this year. Everyone we called said, “yes” without hesitation. Our frontline staff members continued onsite at the Houses to ensure a safe, supportive environment for our families. Our Board of Directors worked closely with our Leadership Team, monitoring all aspects of the organization and strategically made adjustments to ensure stability. Our community partners and donors sent items from our Wish List and extra cleaning supplies as needed - thanks to them we had plenty of toilet paper! Our great friends at McDonald’s held the “Sleeves for Support” campaign, a limited edition large-cupsized sleeve fundraiser, in July that raised over $100,000 for RMHC! In response to their success, the McDonald’s of Metro St. Louis Co-op announced their Round-Up for RMHC Challenge to raise $1 million by December 31, 2020. The response by owner/operators, managers, crew members and customers has been overwhelming. It is incredible to watch how people respond so positively in such challenging situations. And it all goes back to my comment that I made in April. Am I concerned? No, because of great friends, donors, and volunteers like you. The Ronald McDonald House will always be strong and successful. Thank you! Always Grateful,
Dan Harbaugh RMHC St. Louis President
