Sophie Conlon
In the lead up to its 25th year, the Ronald McDonald House Charity (RMHC) hoping to increase its regional footprint, starting in Mount Gambier/ Berrin.
RMHC SA executive officer Melissa Monkhouse said the charity would host a quiz night in the city to help make people aware of what it offered and kick off celebrations.
“This is the first region that we’ve come out to, so Limestone Coast is a big region for Ronald McDonald House a lot of families come from Limestone Coast,” she said.
“So as our journey begins this year, it started here in the South East.”
The charity supports more than 335 regional families each year, with around 10 per cent of those from the Limestone Coast.
Ms Monkhouse said in the past five years the house had supported 286 families from the region.
“We estimate if those families had to have paid for accommodation and car parking and food and doing their laundry, that would have cost Limestone Coast families $1.3 million to do that,” she said.
“So we really are an essential service and really want to make sure that we’re there for every regional family when they need us, because it’s not cheap to stay in Adelaide.
“And certainly if your child is sick or experiencing trauma, the last thing you need is the added financial pressure of of staying in city accommodation and just not having the financial means or putting you into financial distress.”
Since 2022 the RMHC has faced an increase in demand and has offered overflow accommodation in nearby hotels and Ms Monkhouse said the upcoming quiz night would directly help fund this initiative as well as the RMHC house itself.
“We need to raise a lot more money than we usually do to cover our costs and the quiz night is a way of not only getting out to regional communities and connecting with our regional families, but also about raising some much needed funds for the Ronald McDonald House,” she said.
She said it cost about $160 per night to house a family and it would be $200 to enter a team of eight at the quiz night.
The evening, set for April 12, is set to be a “great night of fun”.
“Our Quizmaster is also a stand up comedian, so it will be a very good fun night,” Ms Monkhouse said.
In expanding the regional footprint, Ms Monkhouse hoped they would meet families who had benefited from the service over the last 25 years.
“We see a lot of families from the Limestone Coast that have stayed with us in the last couple of years, but we’re on the hunt for people who haven’t stayed with us for a while,” she said.
“We want to know their stories and their experience at Ronald McDonald House as we’re as we come towards our 25 years.”
The RMHC Mount Gambier Quiz Night will be held at South Gambier Football Club on April 12, from 6pm.
For more information or tickets visit safundraising.rmhc.org.au/event/rmhcsaquiznightmtgambier/
