The Henriques family stayed at Ronald McDonald House in Townsville in December 2018, while they awaited the arrival of their twins, Lulu and Frankie. After welcoming their twins into the world, the family stayed at RMHC North Australia for another three weeks.

“Thanks to Ronald McDonald House, they made Christmas away from home not so hard by helping us to be together with all our kids,” said Mum Aleece.

The twins were then transferred to the family’s hometown in Cairns for two weeks, before Aleece travelled down to Ronald McDonald House in Brisbane with the two newborns, where they stayed for four months.

“When you’re in a situation when you’ve got a child in hospital, the stress levels are high. Lulu had to go through open-heart surgery three times while we were there that first four months.”

Thanks to Ronald McDonald House in Townsville and Brisbane, the Charity could alleviate some stress for Aleece and her family.

“Not having the stress of having to worry about accommodation, the simple things like having food available if we couldn’t or didn’t have the energy to cook. Having someone to talk to; the volunteers are amazing and so friendly,” Aleece said of her experience with the Charity.

Just recently, the family travelled to Ronald McDonald House so Lulu could have another vital surgery.

“Ronald McDonald is always there and always supporting us and we would be absolutely lost without them,” Aleece explained.

Now that the Henriques family have used Ronald McDonald House multiple times since Lulu’s birth, they know how critical continued donations are to ensure support is given to families who need it most. 

“This charity is absolutely amazing for everything they do. Prior to having Lulu, I knew about Ronald McDonald House, but now that I have had first-hand experience using Ronald McDonald House, you just see how amazing they are, how much this means to the families and how important it is that we have this available to all families.”

As well as free accommodation, local families with sick kids have access to a range of programs provided by RMHC North Australia. These include our Family Room at Townsville University Hospital, our Learning Program which provides free education for sick kids, our Hospitality Cart at Mount Isa Hospital, and our Family Retreat in Palm Cove.