Care during COVID
COVID precautions and sheltering in place at the House
When staying at home is not an option…
In the past year, we’ve all experienced uncertainty. We’ve had concern for our own health, for the wellbeing of our family and friends, and even for people we don’t know. Many of us were able to rearrange our lives to accommodate working from home and online schooling. However, for families with children seeking treatment for a serious illness, staying at home was not an option.
the House has remained open
Throughout the pandemic, the Ronald McDonald House has remained open and continues to provide essential services to ensure families can focus on what matters most - the health of their children.
A few of the changes made at the House in 2020:
Closed the House to the larger community (visitors, volunteer groups, etc.)
Closed shared spaces and increased cleaning and sanitizing
Went from 200 front desk volunteers a week to just 35 (and did the same work!)
Transitioned the Family Meal Program to a Boxed Meal Program and provided boxed meals on 249 days, as well as daily packaged breakfasts
Created a private web page with virtual entertainment (book readings, etc.) for the families
Dedicated volunteers and donors
We could only remain open with the help of our dedicated volunteers and donors. While we operated at a lower occupancy rate to minimize the risk of a family coming into contact with any infected people, we were still able to provide 18,749 nights of housing and services to 250 families at the Seattle House.