A Foundation grant to the Ronald McDonald House Charities Adopt a Room initiative will help improve quality of life for area families weathering the storm of a pediatric medical crisis. The house provides room and board for the families of ill or injured children who are patients in a Wichita hospital.

Kyle and Courtney Bartling, of Hays, and their daughters, Khloe, 4, and Kennedy, 2, stayed at the Ronald McDonald House while Courtney was expecting Kacie and Karson, as well as after the twin girls were born prematurely. It was three months before both babies were ready to leave the Wesley Medical Center Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and return home to Hays.

In 2018, the majority of families from the Foundation’s primary service area who stayed at the Ronald McDonald House had premature infants. These families stayed an average of 21 nights. Research shows that exposure to parents, especially mothers, for premature infants improves sleep patterns and increases breastfeeding. Stress and anxiety are also lowered for parents as they become more confident around their premature infant.