Ronald McDonald Family Room opens doors at Edward Hospital
By Jane Donahue For the Sun February 21, 2012 11:10PM
Coleson Arends (far right) checks out the castle while his brother Caden (left) and Halle join in the fun Tuesday during the Ronald McDonald Family Room opening at Edward Hospital in Naperville. | Jane Donahue/For Sun-Times Media/Naperville Sun 20120221Tuesday,Naperville
If you go
What: A Mom Prom to benefit The Ronald McDonald Family Room at Edward Hospital
When: 7 to 11 p.m. Friday, Feb. 24
Where: Hyatt Lisle, 1400 Corporetum Drive, Lisle
Tickets: $100 includes dinner and two drink tickets. A table of 10 can be reserved for $700. All proceeds will go to The KidsCare Campaign to benefit The Ronald McDonald Family Room at Edward Hospital.
Contact: kim.lovejoyvoss@gmail.com
Article Extras
Updated: March 23, 2012 8:18AM
It feels like home.
That was the consensus of almost 200 visitors who got a sneak peak Tuesday of the Ronald McDonald Family Room at Edward Hospital.
“For a long time, we’ve dreamed of having a place for parents to rest and regroup when they’re here with their sick children,” says Pam Davis, president and CEO of Edward Hospital. “Thanks to Ronald McDonald House Charities of Chicagoland and Northwest Indiana and the Edward Foundation, the dream has come true.”
Davis said she always has wanted to partner with Ronald McDonald House Charities, and this project is one she is extremely proud.
“This is for all of our patients and their family members who now have a wonderful place to stay very close to where their children are being cared for,” Davis said. “We give excellent, excellent care, day in and day out, and now we have the facilities that also show that.”
The almost 2,000-square-foot home-away-from-home offers similar benefits to a Ronald McDonald House but within the confines of Edward Hospital. Just steps away from both the newborn and pediatric intensive care units, it’s a cheerful respite for parents of sick children.
“It totally exceeded our expectations,” said Naperville resident Paul Huebener, who serves as chairman of the board of directors for RMHC-CNI. “I have seen the families that benefit from staying at a Ronald McDonald House, and the appreciation on their faces when they know they don’t have to drive back home. They have a warm bed to sleep in and a hot shower available. It takes their minds off the day-to-day things and allows them to focus on their child.”
Boasting a living room with relaxation areas, a kitchen, two sleeping rooms and showers, the Ronald McDonald Family Room offers all the comforts of home. The tasteful décor of the living and sleeping areas is reminiscent of an upscale hotel, while the colorful playroom packed with toys allows patients and their siblings to have a sense of normalcy during their child’s hospital stay.
Naperville mom Chelle Arends knows all too well what it is like to spend many nights in a hospital with a sick child. Her son Coleson was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia more than three years ago, and was treated at both Edward and the University of Chicago medical centers.
“It would have meant everything to our family to have a place like this when Coleson was in the hospital,” Arends said. “To have a place like this where my other kids could visit us would have been amazing.”
Arends said she stayed in Coleson’s room while he was being treated, and her family would come there to visit.
“You couldn’t have pried me away from his bedside,” she said. “But here, it (the family room) is in the hospital. You can walk, grab something from the kitchen and go right back. It was a scary time, and a place like this would have been a great benefit.”
A Mom Prom will take place this Friday to benefit the Ronald McDonald Family Room at Edward Hospital in Naperville.
Coordinator Kim Lovejoy-Voss said she and a group of friends organized the ladies’ event as a “fun night for moms/women to get together, enjoy each other’s company, have dinner and support a very worthy cause.”
“Chelle Arends and her son Coleson have visited Edward and many other hospitals in the Chicago area the last few years,” Lovejoy-Voss said. “Supporting the Ronald McDonald rooms is something very near to her heart, which is why we decided to organize this prom.”
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