SantaFeToday.com Santa Fe’s Hometown News
By Ronald McDonald House Charities
Four New Mexico families who own and operate several McDonald’s restaurants will present a $20,000 check to CHRISTUS St.Vincent Hospital in Santa Fe, NM to be used towards the construction of northern New Mexico’s first Ronald Mc- Donald House Charities of New Mexico (RMHC-NM) Family Room Program. The check presentation will take place during the grand opening of Santa Fe’s newest McDonald’s located at 6419 Airport Rd. on Monday. Aug. 27 beginning at 11 a.m.
The Ronald McDonald Family Room in CHRISTUS St. Vincent Hospital will provide a place of respite for families while their children are undergoing inpatient treatment.
“As owner/operators and members of the community, we are all honored to help make the Ronald McDonald House Charities of New Mexico Family Room at Christus St. Vincent Hospital a reality which will serve families in northern New Mexico,” said Vickie Zamora, owner/operator of five McDonald’s restaurants in Santa Fe, along with her husband, Andres Zamora, and daughter, Kristin Condit.
“We are very grateful to the McDonald’s families and all of our donors who have gener- ously contributed to the Family Room,” said President and Chief Executive Officer of St. Vincent Hospital Foundation, Jeff Lamie. “Research shows that having family around in the hospital helps children heal and cope better. Plus, staying close allows parents to better communicate with their child’s medical team and improves adherence to complicated treatment plans.”
Sarah Newman, Development Director for RMHC-NM added, “We are very fortunate for the partnership of McDonald’s and CHRISTUS St. Vincent Hospital to enable us to expand our Family Room Program to serve more New Mexico families.”
The $20,000 donation is a combined contribution among the Zamora’s and three other McDonald’s owner/operators including the Garza, DeLaRiva and Aragon families.
The estimated cost of the Family Room is $130,000 and – along with the four McDon- ald’s families – nine other private donations have been made towards the project. Do- nations are still needed.
CHRISTUS St. Vincent Hospital serves seven NM counties and over 300,000 people. The Family Room is situated within the hospital, steps away from the Pediatric and Birthing Units. The space offers a place for families of sick children to rest, regroup and remove themselves from the hospital setting.
The Family Room is equipped with a kitchen area including refrigerator and microwave, coffee and snacks, internet access, seating area, quiet room and books.
Construction of the Family Room should be completed by mid September with a grand opening event to be scheduled in October.
The McDonald’s check presentation will take place during the grand opening of Mc- Donald’s at 6419 Airport Rd in Santa Fe, from 11 am–12:30 pm. Prizes including a chil- dren’s bicycle and outdoor items will be given away to the public during a live radio remote with K-Suave.
The newest McDonald’s is the first in New Mexico to get a state of the art kitchen with automated features. The new restaurant will also have four new kiosks for self ordering, a third window for future use, interactive sparkle table for children at the PlayPlace and seat 72 customers. The restaurant will employ 43 people.
For more information contact Erica Asmus-Otero at 505-259-2202 or erica@fitzgerald-
petersen.com.
