Ronald McDonald House serves local families

For parents who must seek medical care for their children, the Ronald McDonald House of the Four States offers a "home away from home" for parents whose children are receiving care at either Freeman Hospital or St. John's Regional Medical Center in Joplin, Mo.

After Fort Scott residents David and Trista Miller welcomed their fourth baby into the world, they found themselves needing a "home away from home." Little Coryn Cate Miller emerged from her mother's womb five weeks premature. Her early entry into the world caused Coryn to experience some respiratory distress, Trista said.

Following the admission of their youngest child into the neonatal intensive care unit at a hospital in Joplin, the Millers did not need to worry about sleeping in the hospital waiting room chairs. Neither did they need to try to contain their other children in a costly confined hotel room. The Ronald McDonald House of the Four States, located within walking distance of both hospitals in Joplin, had a room that the Millers could occupy for only $10 per night, Trista said.

The house, which first opened its doors on July 27, 1998, is equipped with 10 sizable bedrooms, each containing a private bathroom, a written statement from the organization said.

"It was incredible," Trista said. "We had our own bedroom with a private bathroom. It was like a huge hotel all on one level," she said.

The house is also equipped with two spacious family rooms where families can relax and visit. One of these family rooms also includes a children's play area. An additional play area exists outside for the children to explore, the statement said.

Trista said that the fully stocked kitchen was extremely helpful and contained everything that her family needed. Area restaurants, churches, and volunteers furnish the house with fully prepared meals several times a week, the statement from the agency said.

"It was so nice to have meals already prepared for us several times a week. Some days we were tired and didn't feel like cooking. One night we even had food from the Olive Garden," Trista said.

The Millers are not the only family from Bourbon County who has needed a place to stay while their child was being treated at one of the Joplin hospitals. According to the written statement, 54 families from Fort Scott have needed to use the facility so far. In addition to the families in Fort Scott, eight families from smaller towns in Bourbon County have used the comforts of the "House That Love Built," the statement said.

The Ronald McDonald House of the Four States enlists the help of 131 volunteers along with a house manager who is responsible for organizing the day-to-day house operations, the statement said.

In 1974, the first Ronald McDonald House was established in Philadelphia, Pa. Philadelphia Eagles play Fred Hill and his wife Fran, whose daughter was undergoing treatment for leukemia; the Philadelphia Eagles teammates and General Manager Jim Murray; Audrey Evans, a physician from the Children's hospital of Philadelphia; and local McDonald's franchises combined efforts to begin the organization, the statement said.

"The Ronald McDonald House is a wonderful thing. It helps many people," Mark McCoy, owner of the Fort Scott McDonald's, said.

For more information about the Ronald McDonald House of the Four States or to make a donation to the non-profit organization, call (417) 624-CARE.