At Ronald McDonald House Charities® of Greater Washington, DC, we owe our continued success to the tireless work of volunteers and the countless contributions from our donors.
1974
The first Ronald McDonald House opened in Philadelphia with the help of Dr. Audrey Evans, a pediatric oncologist at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.
1978
With the active support of the Greater Washington Advertising Cooperative of the McDonald’s Corporation, our cornerstone program, the Ronald McDonald House, was launched and incorporated as a non-profit, volunteer organization.
1980
The original Ronald McDonald House® of Washington, DC opened its doors in June of 1980, and was the sixteenth RMH to open nationwide in the six years since the program began.
1995
RMH merged with Ronald McDonald House Charities to become Ronald McDonald House Charities® of Greater Washington, DC (RMHCDC).
1998
RMHCDC opened its second Ronald McDonald House in Northern Virginia.
2003
RMHCDC puts the first KIDS Mobile Medical Clinic/Ronald McDonald Care Mobile on the road in Washington, D.C. District Wards 5-8.
2006
A Capital Campaign was launched to raise funds to build a larger RMH located on 14th Street NE.
2011
RMHCDC unveiled a brand new Ronald McDonald House of Washington, DC with 25 rooms, including 4 isolation suites for children with compromised immune systems. The new RMH was built “green” and certified as LEED Gold to benefit our families and the community for generations to come.
2015
RMHCDC unveiled a new KIDS Mobile Medical Clinic/Ronald McDonald Care Mobile.
2017
Our second Ronald McDonald Care Mobile Launched with a focus on the FITNESS Program (Fun In Teaching Nutrition and Exercise to Successful Students). Partnering with local schools in DC, this second mobile unit delivers a curriculum focusing on healthy eating and the importance of physical activity to students in grades K-8.
2020
RMHCDC begins renovating both Ronald McDonald House programs to increase bedrooms at the Ronald McDonald House of Northern Virginia from 8 guest rooms to 24 guest rooms, and the Ronald McDonald House of Washington, DC from 26 to 32 guest rooms.
2021
Expansions and renovations at both Ronald McDonald House programs in Washington, D.C. and Northern Virginia were completed! Twenty-two guest suites were added increasing our capacity, family-centered spaces, and allowing us to better serve 33% more families each year.