With the support of HJWC, Ronald McDonald House Charities of Chicagoland and NW Indiana will be able to serve the families of pediatric patients in the western suburbs in a way we never have before. We have developed a program with Edward Hospital (www.edward.org) to open a Ronald McDonald Family Room (RMFR) in the first quarter of 2011. This RMFR is a respite space of about 1,800 sq ft in the hospital that will include three bedrooms, a kitchenette, a resource (computer, internet) area, a playroom and a comfortable space to just sit and relax for parents and their (other) children. This will permit parents to be in a “non-hospital setting” with the resources they need while staying as close as possible to their child.

The mission of Ronald McDonald House Charities® of Chicagoland and Northwest Indiana (RMHC®-CNI) is to improve the health, well-being and education of children through our core programs. Our four Houses provide a “home away from home” to keep the families of hospitalized children together. Located near Advocate Hope Children’s Hospital, Children’s Memorial Hospital, Loyola University Medical Center and University of Chicago Comer Children’s Hospital, our Houses allow families to eat, sleep and find the emotional support they need – just blocks from where their child is being treated. For more information visit: www.RonaldHouseChicago.com.