RONALD MCDONALD HOUSE CHARITIES OF GREATER WASHINGTON DC INC

RMHCDC’s mission is to positively impact the health and well-being of children. Our two Ronald McDonald Houses provide temporary housing for the families of critically ill children who have traveled to the DC area to access specialized medical care not available in their hometowns. The KIDS Mobile Medical Clinic/Ronald McDonald Care Mobile provides free primary health care to under-served children in DC and the FITNESS Program partners with local schools to help reduce childhood obesity. Our three Ronald McDonald Family Rooms provide parents with many of the amenities of home in addition to supportive programming. We believe, and research shows, that helping to ensure that parents are better able to focus on their child and their child's treatment plan leads to a better overall clinical experience. Our goals over the next 3-5 years are to expand both of our Houses to increase capacity from 34 to 56 total guest rooms, better positioning us to help the 33% of families on our wait lists we are not currently able to accommodate.

Our strategic plan consists of four priorities. Each has defined goals, objectives and measurements.

1. Program Performance
Our strategic plan is designed to look broadly at community need, to review and determine alignment of our programs to need and mission, to reflect a proactive approach to new program development and to demonstrate an openness to the need for service outside our current program mix.

2. Community Engagement
Our focus is to effectively communicate our mission, values, activities and impact; and to enlist key influencers and strengthen existing alliances.

3. Financial Sustainability
Our overall financial goal is to generate sufficient financial support to fund the mission and long-term vision for RMHCDC.

4. Management Effectiveness
Our goal is to continue to maintain a high level of administration and management of the Chapter and to uphold the commitment to our mission and values.

Our internal resources include strong fiduciary management of our financial portfolio and assets, our staff, volunteers, and Board, and Global RMHC. We develop a realistic and sustainable budget each year based on our Strategic Plan. We have a committed staff, competent and professional and an effective leadership/management team. Our Board of Directors is the result of targeted recruitment; Board members bring expertise in a number of essential areas. Board members are also expected to contribute financially. Global RMHC is a tremendous resource, from establishing and expecting best practices to providing access to national donors.
Our external resources include our hospital and corporate partnerships and our well-known and respected brand. We have a strong partnership with the McDonald's corporation and with our local McDonald's owner-operators and we have developed other mutually rewarding corporate partnerships. We also work closely and collaboratively with our medical partners.

Since 1980 when our first House opened, RMHCDC has provided over 191,050 nights to families in crisis. We have expanded our Ronald McDonald Family Room program at Children's National and opened two new Ronald McDonald Family Rooms at Inova Children's Hospital. Our KIDS Mobile Medical Clinic/Ronald McDonald Care Mobile program (KMMC/RMCM) has expanded its services over the years as additional needs have been identified in the community. Our newest Care Mobile, home of the FITNESS Program, is a direct result of KMMC/RMCM staff observing rising obesity rates on the medical unit. We believe our strengths are in our mission, our brand, the quality of our staff and Board, our prudent financial stewardship and transparency, and our Global resources. Our challenges include raising adequate operating funds as we grow. We are pleased to have been recognized by the Catalogue for Philanthropy since 2007 and have been rated four stars by Charity Navigator.