Fondazione Ronald McDonald's Garden

The Ronald McDonald Children’s Foundation Italy is a nonprofit organization founded in 1974 in the United States and in 1999 in Italy, with the goal of creating, identifying, and supporting projects that directly contribute to improving the health and well-being of children and their families. A seriously ill child often has to receive treatment far from home. The Ronald Foundation aims to build, purchase, or manage Ronald Houses located near hospitals and Family Rooms situated directly within pediatric wards, to provide lodging and support to sick children and their families during their hospital treatment or therapy. The Ronald Foundation keeps families close when treatment is far away, because being together improves their well-being. Through its programs—Ronald House and Family Rooms—it not only provides access to excellent care but also supports families, enables them to be actively involved in their children’s care, and promotes the implementation of the Family-Centered Care model. Today there are 4 Houses in Italy: two in Rome, one in Brescia and one in Florence, plus a Family Room within the S. Orsola Hospital in Bologna, one within the Cesare Arrigo Children's Hospital in Alessandria and one within ASST Grande Ospedale Metropolitano Niguarda in Milan. Since 1999, in the course of its work in Italy, Fondazione has supported more than 48,000 children and families, providing more than 250,000 overnight stays.