We knew about the Ronald McDonald House but didn't have any experience with it until we had our daughter Reese in April 2020. Unfortunately, she needed emergency surgery two days after birth and spent the first 17 days of her life in the Level III NICU at the Children's Hospital at Greenville Memorial. No one is allowed to spend the night in the Level III NICU, meaning we had to drive to and from the hospital every day. Thankfully we only live 20 minutes away but we realized the incredible challenges this presented for the families around us that lived all over Upstate SC. Many of them had other kids or jobs to attend to while desperately trying to be there bright and early to be present for the doctor's rounds. 

17 days felt like an eternity for us but thankfully Reese ended up being OK and is a healthy, happy 14 month old. With that being said, sadly a lot of other babies we met while we were there did not have the same fate or spent a lot longer in the hospital. It broke our hearts seeing how hard it was for families to be split up during the most challenging times of their life. This is when we vowed to give back to help those families, starting our journey supporting our local Ronald McDonald House. We ask that you give whatever you can at the moment to help support these families through this incredibly difficult time.

The Tollisons