At Ronald McDonald House Charities in Omaha (RMHC), we focus on keeping things as ordinary, unperturbed and boring as possible. Why? Because the families we serve are regular folks facing unfamiliar situations – families with critically ill kids. Medical issues that are sometimes rare, sometimes chronic and sometimes both. And they're often hundreds of miles from home. Obviously, the last thing they need is more trauma, which is why we work extra-hard to make sure their new normal is as normal as can be. In other words, at RMHC we take extraordinary measures to create ordinary times. Our mission is to create and operate programs that directly improve the health and well-being of children. We strive to do so by providing opportunities that strengthen children and families during their most difficult and challenging times. The specific purpose of RMHC is to support access to care, reduce financial burden, provide psychosocial support keeping families together, enhance clinical experiences and outcomes and help families resume normalcy. With 40 rooms and more than 14,600 lodging nights annually, normalcy is established by providing warm beds, hot showers, meals, laundry facilities, family friendly kitchens, playrooms, and a playground - all of the basic essentials of home. We also provide educational and artistic programs for all members of the family. Additionally, the Ronald McDonald House environment includes a built in support system where families are able to connect with each other forming an interdependent network of resources and collaboration. The cost to provide our services is approximately $120 per night, per family. Families are asked to pay $20 per night, but no family is ever turned away due to inability to pay.