McMurray Makes Donation To Ronald McDonald House Charities

NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (NSCS) driver Jamie McMurray will donate $5,000 to the Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) of the Huron Valley “Hope Away from Home” campaign during his visit to families being helped by the local nonprofit.

Local McDonald’s owner/operators, Ronald McDonald and members of the RMHC of Huron Valley staff and families will be at the event to accept the generous donation, which will cover the cost of refurnishing one room in the Ronald McDonald House of Ann Arbor. McMurray, who drives the No. 1 McDonald’s Chevrolet SS in the NSCS, is committing a total of $50,000 to local RMHC Chapters in the U.S.

“We are very humbled and honored by Jamie’s generous donation,” said Kim Kelly, executive director of RMHC of Huron Valley. “The families who stay at our Houses have children who are ill and have to spend weeks and sometimes months away from their homes. We help take away the stress of making meals and finding a place to stay and allow them to focus on what’s most important -- the healing of their child.”

McMurray will be driving the McDonald’s Chevrolet SS in the NASCAR Quicken Loans 400 on Sunday, June 16, 2013, at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn, Mich. His “pit stop” to the Ronald McDonald House of Ann Arbor is the first of multiple visits to Ronald McDonald Houses nationwide as a part of the “Join Team McMurray” initiative. The initiative encourages McMurray fans to start their own online fundraising pages to encourage their friends and social networks to donate to the mission of the nonprofit.

The Chapter’s “Hope Away From Home” campaign began in 2010 and marked a milestone in December of 2011 with the opening of the Ronald McDonald House within C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital. The second phase of the campaign launched in February 2013, focusing on the renovation and refurbishment of the Ronald McDonald House of Ann Arbor on Washington Heights. With the renovation, the House will provide each of 29 families served each night larger, private and more comfortable accommodations.

To learn how you can support the families of children going through a medical crisis through the “Hope Away from Home” campaign, visit rmh-annarbor.org or to the “Join Team McMurray” visit rmhc.org/teammcmurray .

Ronald McDonald House Charities of the Huron Valley has served more than 18,000 families since opening the first Ronald McDonald House in Ann Arbor in 1985. Originally able to accommodate 24 families each night, an expansion in 1992 increased that number to 29. With the 2011 opening of the Ronald McDonald House within C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital, the total number of rooms has increased to 41 for families between the two Ronald McDonald House locations in Ann Arbor. For more information, visit www.rmh-annarbor.org.