Ronald McDonald House Charities® Of Southern California Joins Global Storytelling Movement To Celebrate 40 Years Of Keeping Families Together

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 9, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Over the last 40 years, Ronald McDonald House Charities® (RMHC®) has supported millions of families with critically-ill children by providing family centered care programs that help them stay together and close by during an unimaginable time. Since 1974, the Charity has grown to support nearly 9 million people each year. Now through October 15^th, RMHC of Southern California is celebrating this milestone and inviting the community to join them and become part of a global storytelling movement.

Believing in the notion that nothing matters more than family, RMHC of Southern California is inviting individuals and businesses to share their RMHC stories and experiences using #forRMHC. To inspire creative storytelling, the Charity encourages people to include photos that incorporate the iconic RMHC red and white stripes as a visual symbol of support for all the families who have been touched by RMHC programs. The social media campaign will take place the week before the anniversary, which is on Wednesday, October 15^th and is designated as the RMHC Day of Change.

"This is an opportunity to connect people in our community with others from around the world who have this shared experience through RMHC," says Vince Bryson, Chief Executive Officer of RMHC of Southern California. "No one understands the emotional and physical stress RMHC families go through better than the families who have experienced it themselves, the volunteers who are there every day to support them and the donors who help ensure we can support as many of those parents and children as possible. This celebration is an incredible opportunity to come together and see the impact RMHC has around the world!"

The first Ronald McDonald House in Southern California opened in 1980 and has welcomed more than 20,000 families from more than 40 countries. For more than 30 years, RMHC of Southern California has been committed to providing comfort, care and support to children and families through a variety of wellness programs. By keeping families, especially siblings, together the chapter is helping to ease the impact of having an ill child on the entire family. The chapter currently operates six Ronald McDonald Houses® in Bakersfield, Loma Linda, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Orange and Pasadena; Camp Ronald McDonald for Good Times®, a Community Grants Board benefitting local nonprofits and four scholarship programs for exceptional high school seniors.

The first Ronald McDonald House opened in 1974 in Philadelphia, Pa. and today, the Charity supports the critical needs of children through three core programs: Ronald McDonald House, Ronald McDonald Family Room® and Ronald McDonald Care Mobile®. Ronald McDonald Houses serve as a "home-away-from-home" at little to no cost for families with critically-ill children. The House keeps families together and close by their hospitalized child, while helping them balance the need for both privacy and social support. The Family Room provides a haven for rest and relaxation inside the hospital, allowing families to remain just steps from their sick child and the Ronald McDonald Care Mobiles offer much-needed affordable healthcare for children, including medical, dental, vision and more right in their own neighborhood.

To learn more about RMHC and its work to improve the health and wellbeing of children and families, visit www.rmhc.org or www.Facebook.com/RMHCglobal or www.Twitter.com/RMHC.

About Ronald McDonald House Charities® of Southern California
For more than 35 years, Ronald McDonald House Charities® of Southern California (RMHCSC) programs have been committed to providing comfort, care and support to children and families through a variety of wellness and educational programs across Inyo, Kern, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara and Ventura counties. With the help of volunteers, RMHCSC operates six Ronald McDonald Houses in Bakersfield, Loma Linda, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Orange and Pasadena and two Ronald McDonald Family Rooms, which help seriously-ill children and their families stay together during difficult times. The organization is also the only Ronald McDonald House Charities chapter that operates the cost-free, medically supervised, year-round Camp Ronald McDonald For Good Times®, designed to help children rediscover their self-esteem, self-reliance and independence after experiencing cancer. Within Southern California, RMHCSC has provided nearly $25 million in funding through its Community Grants Board to deserving non-profits and funds four college scholarship programs that have awarded more than $4.8 million to exemplary high school students. More information about RMHCSC and its programs can be found at www.rmhcsc.org or on www.Facebook.com/RMHCSoCal and www.Twitter.com/RMHC_SoCal.

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20141008/151054

SOURCE Ronald McDonald House Charities of Southern California