At RMHC-NM our House is just like yours. We bring families together, keep dinner on the table, and create new memories all year round. By supporting the Rock Your Socks! Virtual 5K you're helping families just like your own. Your registration fee or donation will help provide a safe, comfortable place to stay, hot meals, and the support families need to help heal their sick or injured child.

March 17, 2019, marked a joyous and terrifying occasion for Anthony and Kim Falco. Their daughter, Giovanna, affectionately called Gia, was born early and they didn’t think she would survive. She weighed just 14 ounces and was 11 inches long. While their baby girl was being cared for at Presbyterian Hospital, the couple hoped for a miracle.

At the time, the couple lived in Taos and needed accommodations in Albuquerque as they knew it was going to be a long stay. There was an opening available at the Ronald McDonald House, and it became their home for the next six months.

Gia was a fighter from the start, struggling mainly with pulmonary hypertension. She went through six surgeries before her first birthday. Every time Anthony and Kim feared the worst, Gia would make it through her next surgery or procedure.

During all of this, the Yale House was a place for the couple to decompress. It was more than a place to stay, they had a home.

“The dinners at night, familiarity with the staff and other people staying there, it provided us a place to feel normalcy,” said Kim.

On Kim’s first Mother’s Day, it was emotional to wake up knowing her baby was in the hospital and not by her side. Then she was given a gift bag from the House staff that made her feel special. “Acknowledging those days meant a lot to me,” said Kim. 

The family is grateful that during their stay, they were able to develop a support system and meet people that understood what they were going through. “We stay in touch with other families from the House. Some we see and speak to regularly,” said Kim.

The Falco family now lives in Las Cruces and Gia is doing extremely well. When people meet her, they are shocked to hear about what she went through. She has some speech issues that she is working through but is completely healthy otherwise. Recently, she was able to start seeing her primary doctor only instead of multiple specialists.

Anthony and Kim feel blessed their daughter has come such a long way. They also welcomed another blessing in January of 2020, a second daughter, Angelina. “Gia and Angie are only ten months apart. People can’t always tell who is older. They are the best of friends but always competing for attention,” Kim laughed.

When people ask the Falco family about the Ronald McDonald House, they tell people how grateful they are to have had the opportunity to stay somewhere that was safe and relieved the burden of where to live during those six challenging months.

It's thanks to supporters like you that RMHC-NM is able to continue to keep families together and close to the care they need. We thank you for your continued support, kindness, and caring for our mission of providing comfort, care and a "home-away-from-home" for families with ill children, no matter the circumstances.