The Ronald McDonald Family Room®, located in the Ladish Co. Foundation Center at Rogers Behavioral Health’s main campus in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin, recently celebrated its one year anniversary. Since opening its doors, the Family Room has welcomed 2,790 (as of 8/1) visits from families and friends visiting a loved one receiving treatment at Rogers.
In light of it’s one year anniversary, we’d like to honor the parents of Rogers’ patients who work just as tirelessly as their children to ensure their success on the road to recovery.
Heidi was one of the first parents to visit the Family Room while her child was in treatment at Rogers last fall. “We lucked out that it opened the week our daughter started treatment,” Heidi tells us. “The Family Room presents an opportunity for parents to connect with others experiencing the same challenges. Sometimes it helped to talk to those individuals as they understood some of the struggles that faced us.”
There’s plenty of fun to be had in the Family Room with a variety of toys, books, games, and entertainment options. A full kitchen includes complimentary snacks, beverages, and space for families to cook together. With many of the comforts of home, including a private shower and complimentary laundry, the Family Room is an inviting space for families to rest and recharge while supporting their loved one in treatment.
During the week, the majority of Family Room visits come from parents of children receiving treatment at our Silver Lake and Silver Lake North outpatient centers, just two miles up the road from the Ladish Center. Keeping up with day-to-day responsibilities can be challenging when you’re far from home. The Quiet Room offers parents a private space to rest, relax, work remotely, or even attend virtual sessions with their child’s treatment team.
One of the most popular amenities in the Family Room is the Creativity Room, fully stocked with arts and crafts supplies and free for all guests and patients to use. “I loved the craft room,” Heidi reflected. “The people who designed it thought of everything. It was a place to escape and create whatever you could dream up.”
For parents with children in treatment, it can sometimes feel like an uphill battle. “The Ronald McDonald House in Milwaukee has served Rogers’ families for over 10 years and, during that time, it has been an honor to serve these families during the long and sometimes harrowing experiences that they have to go through while their child receives treatment,” says Ann Petrie, President and CEO of Ronald McDonald House Charities Eastern Wisconsin. “I am so grateful to Rogers for trusting us to do what we do best, and that is to support families who have a child in treatment.”
When loved ones of patients come to the Family Room, they are welcomed by Ronald McDonald staff and volunteers into to a space that offers both family members and visiting patients a reprieve from the clinical environment of the hospital to spend much needed time healing and reconnecting. The Family Room is open from 9 am – 5 pm daily and families may visit with or without their loved one in treatment.
Ann and the rest of the team are eager to welcome more visitors into the Family Room. “We encourage every family at Rogers to come into the Family Room and enjoy this beauiful space while experience the campassion and care we offer each family.
For Heidi and her family, this resource made all the difference in her child’s journey through treatment, “We had a place to escape for a few hours while our daughter was receiving treatment. The people who work there understand that your family is going through a trying time, and they provided needed smiles upon arrival. Everyone there was comfortable and made you feel welcome. It helped us to feel peace while our family was struggling.”
More information about the Family Room can be found HERE.
