The Lefebvre family

To us the RMCH-SK means family

“Our journey began on August 23rd, 2021 when our son Mikel was diagnosed with an Ependymoma brain tumour. We had gone to the children’s hospital because during our yearly camping trip Mikel had started developing vertigo symptoms that consisted of nausea, dizziness and vomiting for absolutely no reasons we were aware of. We were very concerned because Mikel was a relatively healthy kid and had done nothing to have triggered the vertigo. After a successful surgery where the entire brain tumour was removed, we were told Mikel would need 6.5 weeks of radiation to remedy any possible cancer cells left from the tumour. Not being from Saskatoon, where his treatments would be, we were at a loss as to where we would stay for those 6.5 weeks. We are from Prince Albert, Saskatchewan and the drive to Saskatoon is feasible, however I could not imagine having to do it daily with our son who was about to undergo some big treatments. Also traveling the highways during the winter months didn’t seem like a good option. It was then that our social worker told us about the Ronald McDonald Charity House.

“An added benefit is the amazingly low cost of staying at the RMCH-SK, it is difficult to imagine what the cost of the treatment would have been if we had stayed in a hotel.”

Izadora Lefebvre, Prince Albert, SK

It is never easy to be away from the comfort of your home, but to do it for an extended period, especially during a pandemic, is even worse. Our stay at the RMCH-SK house has been 45 nights up to now. As soon as we walked into the house my family felt very welcomed. The staff goes above and beyond for every family residing there. The building is immaculately maintained even though there are many people going in and out. Although we stayed during the pandemic, we knew our immune compromised son was safe because of all the extra safety measures enacted. The RMCH-SK has a program for everyone. We absolutely loved the family pantry, breakfast every morning, the dinners offered two to three times a week, the therapy craft programs and the big playroom downstairs. These programs helped our stay go by faster as Mikel’s treatments were only 15 minutes a day. The meals provided also helped with our added costs in having to be away from home for so long. An added benefit is the amazingly low cost of staying at the RMCH-SK, it is difficult to imagine what the cost of the treatment would have been if we had stayed in a hotel. It would have been extremely difficult to meet these expenses especially with only one of us working as I had to stay with Mikel.

To us the RMCH-SK means family, the staff felt like family and were friendly and always asked us how we were doing. Also staying at the RMCH-SK house gave us the chance to connect with other family going through similar hardship. Just being able to talk with other families that understand what you are going through was a big stress relief and not something we could have done if we stayed elsewhere. We are forever grateful for our time at the RMCH-SK, we would stay again if needed in a heartbeat. We would recommend RMCH-SK to any family in need knowing firsthand what a great facility it is.  We are grateful to the employees and volunteers for all the hard work they do each day and making us feel at home. “

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