(June 2015 to June 2019)
“Keeping Families Close” is what we look to do at Ronald McDonald House Charities. As an independently administered charity, our mission is to directly improve the health and well-being of children in Singapore. And we recognise there’s so much we can do to help families of these children by keeping the family unit close.
It’s a known fact that children who are unwell draw strength from their families – and by helping them stay close to each other, we bring to reality the saying that “love is the best medicine”.
A rewarding 2017
In 2017, we made a small breakthrough with the opening of a new facility – a new Ronald McDonald Family Room at the Institute of Mental Health (IMH). Similar to the facility at the National University Hospital (NUH), the “home-away-from-home” facility helps families stay close to their children receiving medical treatment at the hospitals. At the same time, the Ronald McDonald House at NUH, with stay-in facilities, also achieved full capacity providing families much needed comfort and support.
As you go through the 2017 Annual Report, you will come to read more about the efforts and fundraising activities in the past year to help better the lives of children in Singapore. We are grateful to the partners, donors, staff and volunteers who have helped us, whether in kind, time or in monetary terms for these programmes. It is through their collective effort that we are able to keep hope alive for families.
2018 is going to be a busy year for us. With the Ronald McDonald Family Room up and running at IMH, this brings to count a total of three facilities we are managing. This is in addition to our other existing programmes in the hospital that bring hope to children, help new mums in need and provide support via grants for medical needs that benefit children. We hope to see more volunteers and donors come on board with us in ways big or small – every little help counts.
Special thanks and welcome
On this note, I want to take the opportunity to thank Meem who as Executive Director (ED) has led the organisation from 2016 to early 2018. Meem has been instrumental in the opening of the Family Room at IMH and also ensured optimal efficiency of the Family House at NUH.We wish her all the best in her future endeavours.
We welcome Daniel on board as our new ED, and look forward to having him work closely with the staff, volunteers and partners to further the Charity’s cause.
Together with the rest of the Board and staff of RMHC, we look forward to your continued support to help us make a difference in the lives of children and their families. Thank you.
Pamela Tor Das
President, RMHC Singapore