Touring the Home of Hope

If I say “Hawai’i” most Westerners immediately have visions of hula dancers, surfers, Hawaiian shirts, leis, and Elvis. If they have been there, they have memories of black lava beaches, luaus, golf courses, pineapples, macadamia, and Spam.

I visited the best place in Hawai’i: Ronald McDonald House of Charity in Honolulu for seriously- and terminally-ill children.

On Judd Hillside in Manoa is a magnificent mansion amongst beautiful homes that despite the economy, none of the homes are under $700k. So you can imagine the “home away from home” for families from the outlying islands of Hawai’i and the Pacific who have traveled here for the best care for their children who are fighting for their lives. The home on Judd Hillside has spacious rooms on the first floor and smaller, hotel-like rooms on the second floor. The great room is like a hotel lobby with an indoor garden, aquarium, and large couches. The dining room is my favorite. It has a massive table and chairs hand-carved from Koa wood with a lush, intricately-stitched carpet covering a cool, stone floor. The home has a playroom, movie room, and a beautiful back yard that hosts weekend barbecues and small events by volunteers and other community non-profits. All the rooms are elaborately decorated in traditional Hawaiian décor not skimping on detail and amenities. It is the best for the families who pass through this home while their children are going through serious treatments and surgeries. Judd Hillside at Manoa was home to my niece, Rica, and my sister, Paula, for a year.

I met the most amazing people. Families shared stories, and although heartbreaking, there was a strong sense of hope and unity in this home. The management and volunteers are just as amazing as the children who maintain their laughter in between treatments and surgeries. The youngest is a preemie born inflight over the Hawaiian Islands when the mother was only in her second trimester. A bubbly toddler with strawberry-red hair and bright eyes was going on her umpteenth surgery. We had a 17-year old teenager with life-threatening blood disease (not cancer) who was accompanied by her oldest sister who looked about the same age. The sisters lost their parents in a tragic accident just a year before while one of them was in treatments. As wards of the state, they were threatened with separation but one turned 18 before the state can finalize papers so she claimed parental rights of her sick sister, and so here they are…

For over a month most of my days were spent at Kapiolani Hospital and Judd Hillside where, at first, the images of babies, toddlers, and their families were difficult to bear. But I adjusted, and as the days passed, we shared stories of hardship and joys, love and family. Most long-time residents at Judd Hillside help new families get acquainted with the home, hospitals, and volunteers. Rica and Paula made special friendships and bonds with the families, doctors, nurses, and volunteers. If you have any time and are planning a get-away, I strongly recommend visiting and volunteering for any children’s charity. There’s a Ronald McDonald House in Seattle that is home to little patients of Children’s Hospital. It is much busier than and not as laid back as Hawai’i, but the essence of love and family and unconditional giving exists just the same. I stayed in one home and shared the lives of people from all over the world and I could not have appreciated this kind of vacation more…

 

Paula & Rica in my hotel room

 

Getting ready for a photo shoot. She was concerned her bandages and port would show...

 

Rica and her support group: siblings, Renae, John, Reiann. Just a day after her first chemo, her hair started to fall out. A week later it was completely gone, but not her smile!

Thank you, Ronald McDonald House of Charities, for a hopeful year.