Ronald McDonald House of Houston, Inc.
Keeping Families Close
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Founded in 1978, the mission of Ronald McDonald House (RMH) Houston is to offer a home away from home providing care, compassion and hope to families with seriously ill children being treated in Texas Medical Center (TMC) member institutions. When families cross the threshold to Ronald McDonald House (RMH) Houston, they are in the midst of fighting cancer, heart disease, awaiting organ transplants, managing birth anomalies, and numerous other life-threatening pediatric health conditions. RMH Houston offers housing, complimentary hot meals, activities, and daily necessities, in a communal living environment so the families can focus solely on the health of their child and the stability of their family.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
70-Bedroom Holcombe House
Ronald McDonald House Houston’s flagship facility, Holcombe House, offers 70 bedrooms, kitchens, complimentary hot meals, snacks and daily food staples, activities, play and lounge areas, laundry facilities, parking and transportation to the Texas Medical Center. RMH Houston has an on-site Licensed Master-Level Social Worker (LMSW), managing bachelor's and master's level student interns from UH School of Social Work, for crisis intervention and case management. RMH Houston offers programs and activities for the children and parents to foster positive, hopeful feelings and possibly connect with other guests with a similar diagnosis on a similar journey. In 2022, RMH Houston documented 20,431 room check-outs and served 370 unduplicated families in the midst of a global pandemic. For guests staying at Holcombe House, we ask for a $25/night donation or file for Medicaid/supplemental benefits, however, NO FAMILY is turned away based on their ability to make a financial contribution.
19-Bedroom House and Family Rooms/Lounges inside Texas Children's Hospital
Ronald McDonald House Houston operates a House inside Texas Children's Hospital and 10 Family Rooms, covering 11 floors, across 4 different buildings. The House consists of 19 private bedrooms that may be checked-out for overnight accommodations, or daytime naps/showers, and a kitchen, dining/living areas, and a laundry room, for the families whose children are being treated in the Neonatal ICU's. The 10 Family Rooms have small kitchens and dining areas, to serve the families and guests of the in-patient and out-patient areas for the Neonatal ICU Level III, Pediatric ICU, Cardiovascular ICU, and the Oncology/Hematology clinic. The Family Rooms offers the family a brief respite while a child receives care, with snacks or light meals available 24/7. In 2022, RMH Houston served 503 unduplicated families through 4,608 room check-outs. In addition, RMH Houston supported 9,803 patient admissions and over 23,000 outpatient appointments through our Family Room services.
20-Bedroom House inside Children's Memorial Hermann Hospital
The Ronald McDonald House inside Children's Memorial Hermann Hospital (CMHH) offers a short-term home for families with children being treated in either the Neonatal Intensive Care (NICU) or the Pediatric Intensive Care Units (PICU) at the hospital. There are 20 bedrooms and 3 Family Lounges to allow parents some respite while staying close to their child during an extremely important time in their child's recovery process. The sleep rooms inside the NICU serve a multi-use purpose in not only allowing families to sleep close to their infants, but also as rooms for parents to learn how to take care of their infant going home with special medical needs while the family receives supervision from nursing staff. In 2022, the CMHH House provided 3,808 room check-outs to 755 unduplicated families. The Family Lounges served 148-patient beds, and over 2,700 admissions.
Family Room inside M. D. Anderson Children's Cancer Hospital
The Ronald McDonald House Family Room inside MD Anderson Children's Cancer Hospital, serves the hospital's Pediatric Intensive Care Unit. This Family Room is equipped with two sleep/nap rooms as well as a main area for families to rest and relax. In 2022, RMH Houston documented 257 overnight stays to 31 unduplicated families, and supported the patient and family members through 4,636 outpatient appointments, and 1,253 hospital admissions.
JoyFULL Eats Program
Families with seriously ill children spend unlimited hours at their child’s bedside, supporting them during difficult treatment regimens and anxiously waiting for a doctor’s visit or test results. The hospitalized child receives meals, but the parents are on their own. Either they skip meals, finish eating what their child does not, or rush to a vending machine for a quick snack. Parents face enormous medical expenses, and the thought of incurring increased credit card debt with numerous trips to a cafeteria is very stressful. RMH Houston’s JoyFULL Eats Program addresses a family’s food insecurity by providing nutritious, complimentary hot meals and sustaining snacks for the family’s well-being during their child’s illness and hospitalization. In 2022, the JoyFULL Eats Program provided 142,299 complimentary hot meals, and over 117,000 individually wrapped snacks, for the families across all 4 of our locations.
Where we work
Awards
4-Star Charity 1991
Charity Navigator
External reviews

Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Number of customers reporting satisfaction with program
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
70-Bedroom Holcombe House
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Context Notes
Families are asked to complete a survey upon check-out, rating their overall experience (1- 5 stars). RMH Houston’s goal is to score at least 4.5 stars on the overall rating system.
Number of meals delivered
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
JoyFULL Eats Program
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
The JoyFULL Eats Program provides at least one complimentary hot meal per day for our families, via catered meals through sponsors, HEB Meal Simples, On-the-Go packaged meals, and breakfast servings.
Our Sustainable Development Goals
Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
As noted by Pediatric Oncologist, Dr. Audrey Evans, “when there is a sick child, there is a sick family.” Ronald McDonald House (RMH) Houston addresses an acute need in the community by serving families who are desperately seeking treatment for their seriously ill child. Securing safe and affordable housing while a child receives treatment or recovers from major surgery, creates emotional and financial stress. No matter how financially stable a family is, the worries of a child’s health and the related expenses add up exponentially – medical, travel, lodging, food, gas, parking, sibling care/activities – the family can be quickly overwhelmed. RMH Houston strives to relieve these stressors so the family can focus solely on the health of their child and the stability of their family.
Located in the 4th largest metro area in the United States and immersed in the largest medical center in the world, RMH Houston has evolved to meet the changing needs of the children and families in its 40-year history. What started as a 20-bedroom house near the Astrodome, now consists of our flagship facility, Holcombe House, with 70 bedrooms and communal kitchen and living areas, and in-hospital Houses, Family Rooms, lounges and private bedrooms in Texas Children’s Hospital, Children’s Memorial Herman Hospital, and MD Anderson Children’s Cancer Hospital. Plus, Mogie, the Holcombe House resident labradoodle, who is always there for extra hugs.
For the families staying at Holcombe House, our Licensed Master-Level Social Worker, and bachelor's and master's level student interns from UH School of Social Work, are available to facilitate Family Support Services – crisis intervention, case management, and coordinate activities to foster positive, hopeful feelings and possibly help the children and parents embrace a new friend with a similar diagnosis. Much like a house with a big family, RMH Houston’s family-centered care environment offers private bedrooms, communal living areas for activities, kitchens and dining areas to share food for the body and soul, and plenty of spaces for hugs and high-fives. As each family fights for a healthy future, RMH Houston is there to establish the emotional foundation for helping that goal become a reality.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
Ronald McDonald House (RMH) Houston was founded in 1978 when Dr. Donald Fernbach, Chief of Hematology and Oncology Service at Texas Children’s Hospital, along with a group of parents, leaders, and McDonald’s franchisees, addressed the need to build a safe haven near the Texas Medical Center (TMC) for families with seriously ill children. In 1981, RMH Houston opened a 21-bedroom House near the Astrodome. As the demand increased, RMH Houston opened Holcombe House in 1997, now with 70-bedrooms, offering families a safe place to stay, kitchens, complimentary meals, family activities, communal play and lounge areas, laundry facilities, free parking, transportation to the TMC, and even, Mogie, our resident labradoodle, who is always available for hugs. For the families whose children are hospitalized, RMH Houston offers a House inside Texas Children's Hospital (TCH) with 20 private bedrooms and 10 Family Rooms/Lounges, inside Children's Memorial Hermann Hospital (CMHH) 20 private bedrooms with kitchen areas and lounges, and 2 private bedrooms, a kitchen and lounge areas inside MD Anderson Children’s Cancer Hospital (MDACCH).
Through our comprehensive programs, RMH Houston is positively impacting the Social Determinants Health for our families, by addressing Housing and Food Insecurity. Offering room check-outs for overnight stays/daytime naps, hot catered meals, and the unrestricted availability of food staples can save a family as much as $250 per day, without relying on couches for sleep, cafeteria meals, or vending machine fare. This support enables our parents and family members a chance to maintain their strength, as they focus on the health of their child, and not have to incur additional costs or worry the accessibility of these basic necessities. Our cherished families need RMH Houston now more than ever. Their stress and fear on a daily basis is already exhausting, and now in the midst of global pandemic, our supportive programs are essential as families cannot put their child's treatment on hold.
Any family, regardless of socioeconomic status, diagnosis, race, ethnicity, home city, is welcomed at any location. The families staying at Holcombe House are asked to contribute a $25/night donation or file for Medicaid or supplemental benefits. However, NO FAMILY is ever turned away based on their ability to make a financial contribution, and there is NO CHARGE for any of the RMH Houston services located inside the hospitals.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
Cristina Vetrano, our Chief Executive Officer, joined Ronald McDonald House Houston in August of 2020. Originally from San Diego, California, Ms. Vetrano was drawn to serving in the non-profit sector since college. With a Bachelor of Science in Finance from San Diego State University and an MBA from the University of Iowa, Ms. Vetrano volunteered in the Peace Corps where she designed a business curriculum and trained teachers in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia for two years. After she returned to the United States, she spent the next 13 years with the American Red Cross in Washington, DC, where she held multiple positions working with technology, disaster services, and the health and safety departments. Moving to Houston, she served as Executive Director of Kid’s Meals, and most recently with CanCare. Her work with CanCare included strategic planning, fundraising, and project development.
Ms. Vetrano has served as CEO of RMH Houston since August of 2020, and leads the Chief Financial Officer, the Chief Advancement Officer, and the Operations Manager. The Operations Manager is also a Licensed Master-Level Social Worker who oversees bachelor's and master's level social work student interns from the University of Houston School of Social Work. The Social Work Interns work closely with the Family Support Services staff to create programs and activities to help the children and parents connect with other guests on similar journeys. RMH Houston also manages a robust group (400+) of volunteers, 38 members of our Board of Directors, 10 members of our Emeritus Board, and 17 members of our Advisory Board.
Each year, RMH Houston's goal is that the families will experience the atmosphere of a loving home, the reduced costs of lodging and meals, the easy access to hospitals, and the support from other families whose children are being treated for a critical illness in the Texas Medical Center. With RMH Houston's intensive supportive wrap-around programs, our efforts are leading the way to provide a continuum of care, which ultimately leads to a more impactful, long-term healthy program for the family.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
Ronald McDonald House Houston was founded in 1978 when a group of doctors, parents and community leaders addressed the need to build a safe haven near the Texas Medical Center for families with seriously ill children. What started as a 21-bedroom home near the Astrodome, has grown to include Holcombe House (70 bedrooms) and our Houses and Family Rooms/Lounges inside Texas Children’s Hospital (19 bedrooms, 10 Family Rooms), Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital (20 bedrooms, 3 Family Rooms), and MD Anderson Children’s Cancer Hospital (2 bedrooms, kitchen and lounge). RMH Houston recorded the following statistics for 2022: documented 29,079 room check-outs across all locations serving 1,625 unduplicated families. In addition, RMH Houston supported 27,896 outpatient appointments and/or procedures with unlimited access to the Family Rooms inside Texas Children's Hospital and MD Anderson Children's Cancer Hospital; and supported 13,773 patent admissions across all in-hospital locations. According to the per diem rates in the Texas Medical Center area published by the General Services Administration, RMH Houston saves a family as much as $250 per day with a room check-out and meals. Therefore, in 2022, RMH Houston saved our families over $7M in food and hotel expenses, thus making a positive impact on Food and Housing Insecurity and the corresponding impact on Social Determinants of Health.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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Who are the people you serve with your mission?
Founded in 1978, the mission of Ronald McDonald House (RMH) Houston is to offer a home away from home providing care, compassion and hope to families with seriously ill children being treated in Texas Medical Center (TMC) member institutions.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We engage the people who provide feedback in looking for ways we can improve in response, We act on the feedback we receive, We tell the people who gave us feedback how we acted on their feedback, We ask the people who gave us feedback how well they think we responded
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
It is difficult to get the people we serve to respond to requests for feedback
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Ronald McDonald House of Houston, Inc.
Board of directorsas of 03/20/2023
Mr. Dan Connally
Fayez Sarofim & Co.
Term: 2023 - 2024
Emily A. Crosswell
Community Volunteer
Debbie Bauer
UBS Financial Services
Hans Boas
BP America, Inc.
Stuart Brown
McDonald's Restaurants
Ana Denena
RSM, LLP
Lawrence M. Hanrahan, M.D.
PWC, Retired
David Hicks
Fifth Corner
Marilyn Mogas
Community Volunteer
Marjana Lindsey Roach
RoachGannon, LLP
Maggie Stacy
Brooks Stacy, LLC
Christine Underwood
Community Volunteer
Chris Weber
Abaco Drilling Technologies
Brandon Baudin
The Sterling Group
James Chvatal
Alvarez & Marsal
Daniel P. Connally
Fayez Sarofim & Co.
Nancy Dinerstein
The Dinerstein Companies
Susan Blaney, M.D.
Texas Children's Hospital
Julie Sudduth
PNC Bank
James Walsh
TD Securities
Shane Kimzey
CenterPoint Energy
Billy Rhoads
Gunvor USA, LLC
Jerry Borowick
KPMG, Retired
Patrick Dennis
JE Dunn Construction
Shannon Hayes, MD
Texas Children's Pediatrics
Liliya Kades
Kades Ventures
Kurt Lyn
Lam, Lyn & Philip, P.C.
Ritu Nadkarni
Biogen
David Shebay
PWC Consulting
Brett Treadwell
RIDA Development
Brian Wycliff
PWC Consulting
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? No -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? No -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? No -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? No -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? No
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data
Equity strategies
Last updated: 12/14/2020GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We ask team members to identify racial disparities in their programs and / or portfolios.
- We analyze disaggregated data and root causes of race disparities that impact the organization's programs, portfolios, and the populations served.
- We disaggregate data to adjust programming goals to keep pace with changing needs of the communities we support.
- We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
- We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
- We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
- We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.