Stephanie Medford
Ronald McDonald House Charities of Arkoma
Red Shoe Soiree
Who: Ronald McDonald House Charities of Arkoma
What: Heavy hors d’oeuvres, wine, local beer, signature cocktail, silent and live auctions, raffles
When: 7-11 p.m. April 27
Where: 21c Museum Hotel in Bentonville
Tickets: $75
Attire: Cocktail-casual (with red shoes)
Information: (479) 756-5600 or rmhcofarkoma.org
President & CEO
•Service area: Western Arkansas and eastern Oklahoma
•Average number of people served annually: 2,400 children and families
•Services provided: Through our Ronald McDonald House in Fayetteville and our Ronald McDonald Family Rooms in Rogers and Fort Smith, RMHC of Arkoma provides a "home-away-from-home" for families facing the difficulty of a child in need of medical treatment. Complete with overnight guest rooms, comfortable common areas to relax and unwind in, help-yourself fully stocked kitchens as well as dinner served daily, plus laundry and shower facilities, these services are provided at no charge. We also provide dental care in a school-based setting through our Ronald McDonald Care Mobile.
How is your organization's mission unique? Like many other wonderful area nonprofits, we are first and foremost a children's charity. Where we stand out is with the level of care we are able to provide to parents. By making sure that a child's family is close by, well-rested, fed and comfortable, we allow them to be their best selves while making important medical decisions, and help to create a healing environment for the entire family.
Why do you work for a nonprofit organization? Do you have a personal connection to the mission? There is nothing like the feeling of going to work every day knowing you will be making a positive impact in the lives of the people in your community. As a mother of two, the youngest just 11 weeks, I have thankfully never been in a situation where I would have needed our services. If my child was in the hospital, I can't imagine having to leave his side -- but hundreds of families are faced with this reality every month in our service area. It is a blessing to have a part in helping to relieve that burden.
What part of your job fills most of your time? As with any nonprofit, we face ever-evolving challenges, and it's my job to lead our team in determining which resources we can utilize to ensure long-term growth, efficiency and sustainability for our core programs. Our organization has experienced tremendous growth in the last seven years, and I look forward to that trend continuing!
What have you learned on the job that you didn't expect? It's so easy to assume you know what the needs are of the people you serve. You can be the most educated person in your field, but at the end of the day, you learn the most by simply asking the individual what their needs are. It goes a long way in ensuring your organization is carrying out its mission in the most impactful way possible.
Are there volunteer opportunities in your organization? What are they? Our most popular volunteer opportunity is our Share-A-Meal program, where individuals, businesses and organizations sign up to provide dinner to our families. There's nothing like the healing communal nature of a good meal!
What upcoming fundraisers and/or other events does your organization have planned? On April 27, we are having our fourth annual Red Shoe Soirée at the Record in Bentonville. This is a really fun, cocktail-casual event with great food and drinks, music and the best group of supporters any nonprofit could ask for. We'll have entertainment, DJ Brock, our first live auction, raffles, and we will be honoring Joyce Pollard with this year's Taylor Award. Tables have sold out, but tickets are $75 each and can be purchased at nwaredshoesoiree.com or by calling (479) 756-5600.
-- Carin Schoppmeyer
NAN Profiles on 04/08/2018