MESSAGE FROM THE CEO

Every day at Ronald McDonald House Charities of Southern California, we see the struggles that families face when their lives have been disrupted by a child’s injury or illness. Many are far from home and cut-off from the friends and family members they depend on during the course of their day-to-day lives. Often they have other children who are looking to them to maintain a sense of normalcy and routine. They’re also dealing with the personal consequences of a pediatric emergency—lost work hours, poor sleep, fear of the unknown, and overwhelming anxiety.

Fortunately, we see something else when families walk through the doors of one of our programs: relief. Relief at finding a safe, comfortable “home away from home” close to their hospitalized child. Relief to have a place where they can make breakfast for their kids each morning, or prepare a warm family meal at the end of a long, tiring day. Relief to be surrounded by kind, smiling faces who understand their struggles and are here to help.

Our focus is always on maintaining this core mission of support to children and families when it’s most important. At the same time, we’re always looking for ways to enhance these services and meet the needs of even more families who are dealing with the unthinkable.

We’re finding new opportunities to partner with area hospitals and medical staff to coordinate the care and support we offer to families. Our award-winning Family Support Services program is developing an online community to help our guests access vital resources and keep in touch after they check out of our programs. We’re making key investments in our staff and infrastructure to help sustain the strong foundation we’ve built over the past four decades.
 

And we are growing! Last year we launched campaigns to expand our Ronald McDonald Houses in Orange County and Bakersfield, and began planning for new programs to open soon in West L.A. (at UCLA/Mattel Children’s Hospital), and in Ventura (at Ventura County Medical Center).

Of course, none of this would be possible without the continued support of thousands of supporters and volunteers who share our commitment to children and families. Some of these friends are profiled in this report, and I hope you’ll take a few minutes to scroll through their profiles and stories. Their compassion and generosity is truly remarkable!

On behalf of all of us at RMHCSC, thank you for another wonderful and impactful year!

Sincerely,


 

Vince Bryson, CEO
RMHCSC

PROGRAMS OVERVIEW

GROWING TO MEET THE NEED

IN THE YEAR AHEAD, WE PLAN TO...

GLOBAL COMMUNITY OF CARE

Our international partner, Ronald McDonald House Charities has local Chapters in more than 64 countries and regions around the world. Families checked in for care at 90 percent of the top children’s hospitals in the world have access to at least one core RMHC family-centered program. Core programs include Ronald McDonald Houses®, Ronald McDonald Family Rooms®, and Ronald McDonald Care Mobiles®.

64

COUNTRIES

AND REGIONS

AROUND

THE WORLD

90%

OF THE TOP CHILDREN’S HOSPITALS IN THE WORLD HAVE ACCESS TO AT LEAST 1 CORE RMHC PROGRAM

FAMILY PROFILE

Brad and Mandy Crihfield first stayed at the Long Beach Ronald McDonald House back in 2014 following the premature birth of their daughter, Victoria, at Miller Children's & Women's Hospital. A short time later, they returned to the Long Beach House after Victoria was diagnosed with brain cancer, and they spent another few months staying at the Los Angeles Ronald McDonald House when Tori was transferred to CHLA to continue treatment. Since then, Brad and Mandy have welcomed a second daughter, Brooklyn. They continue to support other RMHCSC families by preparing Meals of Love at the Long Beach Ronald McDonald House, and by participating each year in Walk for Kids with their 100+ member team, “Victory for Victoria.” Brad serves on the Long Beach Walk Committee, and 2 years ago their family was the Long Beach Walk Host Family.

VOLUNTEER PROFILE

For the past two years, Marsha Garnett has been a tireless advocate for the families we serve and a shining example of volunteer leadership. Her initial involvement with the Los Angeles Ronald McDonald House happened more than a decade ago through her involvement with AT&T Pioneers, where she sits on the executive board. Connecting with the mission of the House helped her find the perfect outlet to merge her culinary and hospitality skills with her passion for service. Marsha now sits on the Gala Committee and leads regular Meals of Love provided by her fellow board members for the families staying at the House.

"The Meals are an opportunity to express my love for the families and provide hope in every bite by creating healthy, delicious food that will take their minds off of the difficulties they are facing for a few moments and fill their hearts and tummies with joy. Being able to meet them where they are, converse with them, laugh, smile, hug, love them and help them make their plates fills my heart with gratitude for life."

– Marsha

MEDICAL PROFILE

Dr. Chris Landon has dedicated his career to the care and treatment of children in Ventura County. As the Director of Pediatrics at Ventura County Medical Center and the Director of the Ventura County Health Care Agency’s Pediatric Diagnostic Center, he worked closely with Dr. Stuart Siegel (one of the founders of Ronald McDonald House Charities of Southern California) to expand services for pediatric cancer patients and allow them to access life-saving medical care closer to home. Their work together led to the founding of Children’s Center for Cancer and Blood Diseases, which offers a full spectrum of clinical and psychosocial services to children and their families during treatment for leukemia, brain tumors, Hodgkin’s lymphoma, and other cancers. Dr. Landon has also been a champion for our new Ronald McDonald Family Room at Ventura County Medical Center, which is due to open in 2020. Just steps away from the pediatrics wing inside the hospital, the new Family Room will provide rest and comfort to families whose children are receiving treatment by Dr. Landon and his colleagues. We’re thrilled to embark on this new project in Ventura, and grateful to medical partners like Dr. Landon for being heroes to children and families in our community!

PARTNER SPOTLIGHT

When it comes to corporate philanthropy, few of our partners shine as brightly, or give as generously, as Aryzta. The company, which supplies baked goods to restaurants and foodservice industries around the world, has a headquarters in Southern California and invests heavily in the communities where its employers work and live. As a major supplier to McDonald’s restaurants, this has meant adopting Ronald McDonald House Charities as their charity of choice. Here in Southern California, Aryzta and its employees have donated generously to programs that support kids and families when it’s most important. For the past 10 years, Aryzta has also served as presenting sponsor of our Annual Golf Classic, our longest-running fundraising event.

"We are privileged to be a McDonald’s supplier, and proud to share the commitment to support RMHC in helping families stay close."

– Division Vice President, and long-time RMHC advocate, Rob Crawford

FINANCIAL REPORT

39%

16%

1%

3%

17%

24%

10%

16%

74%

LEADERSHIP & STAFF

RMHCSC Board of Directors

Jeff Kaminski

Chair
 

Peter Horner

Vice Chair
 

Doug Kanner

Vice Chair
 

Martha Tuma

Secretary

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Mitch Nadler

Treasurer

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Stuart E. Siegel, M.D.

Chair Emeritus

Lena Bryant
 

Scott Cohen

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Joey Ferrell

C. Megan Foker
 

Zulema Garcia
 

Peri Hansen

Larry Kaplan

Ofelia Melendrez-Kumpf

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John Owens
 

Sean Piazza
 

Matt Pillar

Tom Reep
 

Luc Robitaille
 

Charlene Yu Vaughn
 

RMHCSC Leadership Staff

Vince Bryson
Chief Executive Officer

Joseph Chambers
Director, Finance & Administration

Cheri Bazley
Executive Director, Long Beach Ronald McDonald House

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Noel Burcelis
Executive Director, Orange County Ronald McDonald House
 

Manuel Loya 
Executive Director, Los Angeles Ronald McDonald House

Carol Horvitz
Interim Director, Pasadena Ronald McDonald House

Fatima Djelmane-Rodriguez
Executive Director, Camp Ronald McDonald for Good Times

Karen Hooper
Executive Director, Inland Empire Ronald McDonald House

Scarlett Sabin
Director, Bakersfield Ronald McDonald House