Need By Need

The Ronald McDonald House Charities of Columbia, SC (RMHC) needs your help to raise $600-$700 for a new laptop computer and a three-in-one printer/scanner/copier. Currently, they are without a laptop, which will give them the mobility to make presentations at various locations to recruit new volunteers. A new scanner is also essential to scan and send in required Medicaid reimbursement forms and driver’s licenses of the many families the Ronald McDonald House helps.

These two items have been on the RMHC’s “needs” list for a while, but have not been purchased due to the lack of funds. The Ronald McDonald House of Columbia has been operating at full capacity for the past two years and during this time, any extra funds they received went towards purchasing food as well as maintaining the upkeep of the house.

The Ronald McDonald House Charities of Columbia supports two programs: Ronald McDonald House and the Ronald McDonald Family Room. Both of these programs are centered around providing the highest quality of care and comfort for the families of children currently facing cancer, critical illnesses, birth defects and serious injuries.

The Ronald McDonald House Charities of Columbia serves over 350 families a year and has helped roughly 80,000 mothers, fathers, grandparents, sisters, brothers, and other family members since it opened in 1983. The RMHC helps provide a safe and sheltered environment that these families can call their “home away from home” during this stressful time in their lives when a child is sick.

To help the Ronald McDonald House raise these funds, please click the PayPal button below or on the sidebar. Need by Need, Inc. is a 501(c)3 tax exempt organization so all donations are tax deductible. Be sure to keep your PayPal receipt for your tax records.

UPDATE (6/10/10): This need has been fulfilled!

To contact the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Columbia, you can call them at 803.254.3181 or email them at info@rmhcofcolumbia.org.

Because of an unexpected gift from the members of Kingdom Community Church International, we have met our original goal of raising $1,000 which will cover the cost of the stove repairs and the mulch!

However, we feel that we should continue to raise additional funds to help Loaves & Fishes with another need. In addition to the stove repairs and mulch, one of their dormitories is in desperate need of new carpet. The current carpet has been there for eight years and is worn out and heavily stained. At this point, replacement is the only viable option.

Replacing the carpet would benefit the women and children who call the dormitory “home” each night.

An estimated cost of buying and installing new carpet in this dormitory area is also $1,000.

If you would like to help purchase new carpet to make the living conditions at Loaves & Fishes more enjoyable for the women and children that this organization serves, please click on one of the donation buttons located above or below to help fulfill this need.

[UPDATE: Need Fulfilled as of 12/15/09. Be sure to check out the "Blog" for more information.]

We would like to thank everyone who has already given money towards repairing Loaves & Fishes’ stove or towards purchasing mulch for their playground. If any money remains after the repairs and mulch have been paid for, the remainder will go towards paying for the purchase and installation of the carpet. Thanks again and please feel free to contact us with any questions.

Loaves and Fishes, a Christian food pantry and women and children shelter that has served the community for over 25 years, needs your help. Currently, their commercial-size stove needs repaired and they do not have the money to do so. This stove is used to feed the almost 300 individuals that pass through the shelter every year.

Without the use of this stove, the 30 women and children currently staying at the shelter have been forced to cook their food in microwaves and with the one residential-size stove that is also on the verge of going out.

Additionally, Loaves and Fishes is in need of mulch for their playground. It has been roughly five years since they last mulched the playground and there is barely any left. Without a fresh batch, the playground is often too muddy for the children, who stay at the shelter, to play on.

Therefore, Need by Need is looking to raise $1,000 to help fix their stove and provide mulch for the playground. Please click on the donation button below or the “Donate Now” button (above) to contribute towards fulfilling this need.

[UPDATE: As of 8/29/09 these needs have been fulfilled! Click here for pictures of the repaired stove and here for pictures of the mulch.]

After raising the needed money to pay for the repairs and purchase the mulch, a group of volunteers is planning on going to Loaves and Fishes to help them spread the mulch on the playground. If you are interested in helping do this, let us know through our ‘Contact Us‘ page.

Loaves and Fishes, which is located in Maryland Heights, MO, is always looking for volunteers. If you are interested in helping them out, please give them a call at (314) 291-3857.

For more information on Loaves and Fishes, please visit their website.