Ronald McDonald House Charities of Greater Cincinnati

341 Erkenbrecher Ave, Cincinnati, OH 45229
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Our mission Cincinnati’s Ronald McDonald House offers a community of compassion, support and the comforts of home to families with critically ill children, steps away from the medical care they need.

Ronald McDonald House Charities of Greater Cincinnati

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Ways to help

Red Shoe Crew

The Red Shoe Crew is a group of young professionals who help care for critically ill children and their families by volunteering, fundraising and being ambassadors for the mission of Cincinnati's Ronald McDonald House.
  • Monthly
  • 21+, Adults
  • Individuals
  • Event support, Indoor
  • On-site
  • Weekdays, Evenings, Weekends

Taste of Hope Meals

Under the guidance of a professional chef, help prepare and serve meals to our guest families. Donation required.
  • Occasional
  • Teens, 21+, Adults
  • Groups (2-10), Corporate Teams, Families
  • Indoor
  • On-site
  • Weekdays, Evenings, Weekends

Help From Home

Whether you're shopping from our wish list or preparing snack or activity bags for our families, you'll be helping relieve the burdens of families who are far from home and facing incredible challenges. Check out our website for the latest needs.
  • One-time, Occasional, Weekly, Monthly
  • Children, Teens, 21+, 55+, Adults, Child with Adult
  • Individuals, Groups (2-10), Groups (10+), Corporate Teams, Families
  • Virtual, Indoor
  • On-site
  • Weekdays, Evenings, Weekends

Guest Services Volunteer

Guest Services Volunteers support our guest families, staff and other volunteers. All volunteers must be fully-vaccinated against Covid-19 and commit to working at least two four-hour shifts each month.
  • Monthly
  • 21+, 55+
  • Individuals
  • Physical, Office work, Indoor, Outdoor
  • On-site
  • Weekdays, Evenings, Weekends
Items we need now

Wish List

We depend on donated food and supplies to keep our House stocked with all the basic necessities a home requires. Wish list drives are a great way to get family, friends, coworkers and communities involved! Due to COVID19, the best way to help support our guests is by sending your donations directly to our House through our Amazon wish list. We truly appreciate your generosity and understanding.

At this time, we are in urgent need of the following items:

  • Disinfecting wipes
  • Hand soap and hand sanitizer
  • Rolls of paper towels
  • Water bottles
  • Individual condiment packs (ex. ranch, ketchup, mayo, mustard, etc.)
We are constantly updating many other items that we need on our Amazon wish list. You can find that list here:

Here are a few helpful general guidelines about donating items to our House:

  • All donated foods must be store-bought and unopened.
  • We are unable to accept fruits/vegetables from home gardens.
  • We are unable to accept donations of food or drink products past their expiration or “best used by” dates.
  • Avoid items with nuts of any kind.
  • Please do not gift wrap toys.
  • For infection control and the safety of our guest families, we are NOT able to accept USED or PREVIOUSLY OWNED items of any kind.

Your generous donations make our House feel like “home” to our guest families. We are grateful for your support!

*If would prefer to drop off your donations, please do so between the hours of 9 a.m. and 8 p.m. so that we can meet you at the door. No outside visitors are permitted in our House at this time. Please visit our directions page for updated parking information due to construction.
  • In-Kind Donations
  • Wishlist – Amazon, etc
Learn More
Ways to help youth thrive

Guest Services Volunteer

You can help families in their darkest hour by joining our team of committed Guest Services Volunteers (GSVs). GSVs interact with our staff, other volunteers and our amazing families. It’s easy to fall in love with our House, our mission and the families we serve. Just ask the volunteers who have been with us since we opened our doors! Our House simply could not care for our guest families like we do without volunteer support. Volunteering at our House is both a rewarding and challenging responsibility.

As a GSV, you will help our families by working the front desk, in the kitchen, cleaning rooms, organizing donations, driving our shuttle or maintenance around the House.

Picture all the things that need to get done within your own home – now multiply it by 78!

  • Event support, Social Skills
  • Babies and Toddlers, Birth to 5, Elementary (5-10), Middle School, High School, Professionals
  • Different Small Groups
  • Facing Illness
  • Nonprofit
  • Individuals
  • 1 Full Year
  • 2+ Hours/Week
  • Anytime
  • Moderate

Taste of Home Meal Prep

You can help give families a Taste of Hope by preparing and serving a meal at Cincinnati’s Ronald McDonald House. Come together with your coworkers, family, friends, church or civic group while you help provide the nutrition kids need to heal and allow parents more time to focus on their critically ill children. We’ll take care of the details, including the food, recipes, cookware and instruction from a professional chef. Your group will make lasting memories, and you’ll leave knowing that you made a difference for families from the tri-state and around the world while their children are hospitalized. How Taste of Hope Works Everything will be ready for you to help prepare and serve a nutritious meal for our 78 families.
  • Gather 4 to 12 people, ages 14 and older, for a memorable experience.
  • Click "See Opportunity" to book your Taste of Hope meal date and make your tax-deductible donation.
  • Join a House chef, who will guide you through preparing a delicious meal from a carefully selected menu full of fresh ingredients.
  • After serving the meal to our families, your group will enjoy the meal alongside them.
Expect to be with us for 4 hours. Please plan on the following time commitments to bring a Taste of Hope to our families. This includes food prep, serving, eating and cleanup. LUNCH (only served on weekdays) Serving Time: 12:00 noon Time Commitment: 10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. BRUNCH (only served on weekends) Serving Time: 10:00 a.m. Time Commitment: 8:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon DINNER Serving Time: 6:00 p.m. Time Commitment: 4:00 - 8:00 p.m.
  • Event support
  • Birth to 5, Elementary (5-10), Middle School, High School
  • Different Large Groups
  • Facing Illness
  • Nonprofit
  • Groups (2-10), Groups (10+), Corporate Teams, Families
  • 1 Day
  • 1 Day
  • Weekday Afternoons, Weekday Evenings, Weekends
  • Moderate

Snack Provider

Provide a sweet memory for families living in our House by whipping up a tasty treat! Snack Time supplements our Taste of Hope meal program by providing desserts for our meals or a quick breakfast to make the next morning easier for our guest families. Snacks and activities bring joy to our families in many ways. With our snack program, you have an hour and a half in our kitchen to prepare sweet treats, healthy snacks or even small meals — the choice is yours! Our guest families are often running to doctor’s appointments or have limited time due to the needs of their children. By preparing foods that they can grab and go, you’re helping us make sure that they are eating something and letting them know that you care. Groups interested in preparing snacks should provide 50 servings. Snacks are prepared during the following times:
  • 2-3:30 p.m. Monday-Friday
  • 1-2:30 p.m. Saturday/Sunday
  • 7:30-9 p.m. any day
With this option, you will not be serving your snack to guest families, but simply making it for families to enjoy at their leisure. Families will be in and out of the kitchen during the time you are here, and you are welcome to interact.
  • Event support
  • Birth to 5, Elementary (5-10), Middle School, High School
  • Different Large Groups
  • Facing Illness
  • Nonprofit
  • Groups (2-10), Groups (10+), Corporate Teams, Families
  • 1 Day
  • 1 Day
  • Weekday Afternoons, Weekday Evenings, Weekends
  • Moderate

Activity Provider

Activities bring joy to our families in many ways. You could plan an activity such as a craft, a game night or putting on a show in our theatre. This program provides a much-needed lift to our House and our guest families. These guidelines will help you in planning your activity: ♥ Please limit your group size to no more than 10 people. ♥ Please bring any equipment or materials you will need with you. We do not have any kind of a sound system, but you are welcome to bring in your own. ♥ Home-baked foods are not permitted to be brought into our House. If edible items are required for your activity, those items must be store bought and shelf stable. ♥ We schedule activity times from 6:30 – 8:30 PM Sunday through Thursday and weekends 10:30 a.m. – noon. ♥ Unfortunately, we cannot predict the number of people who will participate in your activity. The health and hospital schedules of our guests can fluctuate daily. Because a majority of the children are inpatient or in isolation here at the House, you can expect somewhere between one and twenty people to attend. Ages will range from infant to adult with the majority of kids being elementary school aged. ♥ This volunteer service to the House is usually a two-hour time commitment. Please contact us if you would like to spend more time on a special project. ♥ To respect the varied faiths and backgrounds in our House, all programs should be nondenominational. ♥ Performances and activities are for the benefit of our guest families only. Please do not bring additional ‘”audience” members to your performances. ♥ Volunteer groups are restricted to only the common areas of the House and cannot enter a guest’s room at any time. ♥ We are unable to support community restitution or court ordered volunteers at this time. ♥ For the safety of our guest families, ALL visitors should be healthy - free from fever, cough or colds, or stomach virus symptoms. If anyone in your group has these symptoms, please have them stay home. We are also happy to work to reschedule your activity for when your entire group is healthy.
  • Enrichment (Arts), Social Skills
  • Birth to 5, Elementary (5-10), Middle School, High School
  • Different Large Groups
  • Facing Illness
  • Nonprofit
  • Groups (2-10), Groups (10+), Corporate Teams, Families
  • 1 Day
  • 1 Day
  • Weekday Evenings, Weekends
  • Moderate

Ice Cream Social Host

Ice cream socials are a fun way for our guest families to spend time with other families. Groups providing an ice cream social should be prepared to serve the ice cream to families. This option is available Wednesday, Friday and Sunday evenings at 7:30 p.m. Groups interested in serving ice cream to our families should bring enough ice cream, toppings, cones, etc. for 50 people plus those in your group. Please remember to bring ice cream scoops and disposable bowls and utensils to make for a much quicker and easier clean up. Helpful tip: when planning how much of each item to bring, refer to the serving sizes listed on the ice cream and topping containers.  
  • Event support, Social Skills
  • Birth to 5, Elementary (5-10), Middle School, High School
  • Different Large Groups
  • Facing Illness
  • Nonprofit
  • Groups (2-10), Groups (10+), Corporate Teams, Families
  • 1 Day
  • 1 Day
  • Weekday Evenings
  • Minimal
How you help With a community of support, we can be here for thousands of sick children and their families when they need us. We have opportunities for individuals and groups to get involved and make a difference in the lives of our guest families.
About us Our House can care for 177 families every night, including parents, children receiving outpatient treatment, siblings and other family members. By easing the financial and emotional burdens of caregivers and by taking care of important practical needs, our House allows parents to focus entirely on caring for their children. HowWeHelp:
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