RMH Residents in Play Room

About Us

Ronald McDonald Houses provide families of sick children with a home to stay at while their child is being treated at a nearby hospital. As well, Ronald McDonald Family Rooms provide a comfortable place for families to rest and recharge, right inside hospitals. And through Ronald McDonald Care Mobiles, we help to bring basic medical care to vulnerable communities. So families can stay together and kids can heal better.

15 Ronald McDonald Houses

A home away from home for out-of-town families of seriously ill children undergoing treatment at a nearby hospital

About Houses

16 Ronald McDonald Family Rooms

A calm, nurturing place within the hospital for families to rest and recharge just steps from their sick child’s bedside

About Family Rooms

1 Ronald McDonald Care Mobile

A mobile health unit bringing medical care to underserved communities in Alberta

About Care Mobile
Find a RMHC® Location Near You

Quick Facts

RMHC provides a home away from home for the families of seriously ill children who are staying at a nearby hospital.
There are 15 Ronald McDonald Houses, 16 Ronald McDonald Family Rooms and 1 Ronald McDonald Care Mobile across Canada.
65% of Canadians live outside a city with a children's hospital, which means that they have to travel for medical care if their child is seriously sick or injured. Ronald McDonald Houses give families the chance to stay together and close to their sick children.
Today, Ronald McDonald Houses serve approximately 51% of the families of Canada's most sick and injured children.
As well, Ronald McDonald Family Rooms are serving over 10,000 families right inside the hospital every year.
The Ronald McDonald Care Mobile has travelled more than 74,000 kilometres and have served more than 7,000 families in Canada.
All 15 Ronald McDonald Houses offer a Home for Dinner program for families, and have served 40,762 dinners in one year alone.

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History

  • 1974

    The first Ronald McDonald House opens in Philadelphia, inspired by Kim Hill, a little girl who was battling leukemia.

  • 1977

    McDonald's Canada founded McHappy Day to raise funds for RMHC and other local children's charities. It is now celebrated around the world.

  • 1981

    The first Canadian Ronald McDonald House opens in Toronto.

  • 1982

    RMHC Canada is established as a foundation of everlasting support to Ronald McDonald Houses across Canada.

  • 2004

    McDonald's Canada established the 10 Cent Happy Meal Program, which remains a cornerstone of funding for Ronald McDonald Houses across Canada.

  • 2007

    The first Ronald McDonald Family Room in Canada was built.

  • 2012

    The first Ronald McDonald Care Mobile arrived in Canada to serve the communities in East Calgary, to be joined by a second Care Mobile in 2013.

  • 2014

    By 2014, 10 Ronald McDonald Houses had undergone a complete renovation and two new Ronald McDonald Houses had been built: one in St. John's, NL, and one in Red Deer, AB.

  • 2016

    The very first Ronald McDonald House inside a Hospital opened in Windsor, Ontario, as part of the RMHC Southwestern Ontario Chapter.

  • 2018

    Today, there are 365 Ronald McDonald Houses around the world, serving millions of children and their families every year. Kim Hill still remains the inspiration at the core of RMHC. “At the time I didn’t enjoy being sick. But I’m glad I did get sick, because through my suffering, a great thing has come from it.

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