The Ronald McDonald House Charites of Augusta has been around since 1984 and through a variety of programs, continues to provide care to families of critically sick children with the help of the local community.
One of the most utilized services offered is the Family Services Program, which provides families with a home at the Ronald McDonald House while their children receive care at the nearby hospital.
In 2015, the Ronald McDonald House of Augusta opened a new 23-bedroom house for the families next to Children’s Hospital of Georgia.
Families are also provided with healthy meals through a program called “Meals that Mend”. The program relies on volunteers and community donors to stock its pantry full of healthy food options to serve 20-35 people with three meals per day. According to the Ronald McDonald Charites of Augusta website, this program provides 17,000 meals annually.
According to the charity’s website, Ronald McDonald House Charites of Augusta hosts several local fundraiser events each year, allowing them to keep their doors open to nearly 1,000 families annually, meeting their needs on a daily basis.
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Freda Baker, President and CEO of Ronald McDonald House Charites of Augusta, says their biggest fundraiser is the Wine, Women & Shoes event held in March. Other big fundraiser events include the Red Shoe Golf Classic, the annual Augusta Christmas Parade, as well as many others benefitting the Ronald McDonald House.
“When people support these events, of course they get to come to these events and have a great time, but much of the money we receive through these events are what we use to keep the house open on a daily basis; and without donations of the folks in the community, we would not be able to do what we do every day,” Baker said.
Over the weekend, the Ronald McDonald House of Augusta hosted a Casino Night fundraiser event at Westlake Country Club on Sept. 24.
The $75 tickets included dinner, a champagne toast, two drink tickets, $100 in casino cash and McDonald’s hamburgers and cheeseburgers that were passed out to tables throughout the evening.
According to Baker, over 200 tickets were sold for the event. People that participated turned in their winnings at the end of the night and were entered into a raffle for the chance to win variety of prizes of their choosing.
The casino night was unique fundraiser event idea that Baker said she has not seen in our local area. This is the first time Ronald McDonald House Charities of Augusta has done an event like this one.
“There is nothing like this going on right now and it is just a good opportunity to give folks a chance to feel like they’re in Vegas, at least for one night,” Baker said.
Baker said they plan to continue doing this unique charity event every year.
Chris Rickerson is a staff reporter covering Columbia County government and general assignment topics for The Augusta Press. Reach him at chris@theaugustapress.com.
