May 21, 2025 • 30 mins
Ronald McDonald House Charities of Pittsburgh and Morgantown is dedicated to improving the health and well-being of children. This is why we provide the opportunity for families to be by their child’s bedside as they face life-saving medical situations. We know that keeping families together is better for everyone.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:03):
And welcome in. This is a public affairs program shedding
the light on the interest, issues and concerns of the
greater Pittsburgh area. Good morning. My name is Johnny heart Well.
I'm your host and in studio and old friend Eleanor
Reegal of Ronald McDonald House of Pittsburgh and Morgantown. Good
to see you. First of all, you look amazing.
Speaker 2 (00:20):
No, thank you, that's a no, it's lady.
Speaker 1 (00:22):
But trust me, everybody, you look fantastic. How are you?
Speaker 2 (00:26):
I'm great. I could not be better. Actually, there's just
so many wonderful things going on.
Speaker 1 (00:31):
You know, with Ronald McDonald House. It's unfortunate that we
have nothing to talk about. You have nothing going on ever.
Speaker 2 (00:39):
Ever, that's right, That's why I'm running around right right,
crazy lady, But no, it's all great opportunities for the families.
Speaker 1 (00:47):
Hopefully we can fit all the things that you have
going on in this one program. And you do have
a lot of things going on. You have a couple
of charity events just around the corner. But I want
to kind of last time I talk to you, I
heard that there was some expansion going down in Morgantown.
Is that finished? Is that still progressing and how is
how is that going on?
Speaker 2 (01:07):
Oh, Johnny, it's so exciting. It is so exciting. That
chapter started in nineteen ninety. The house was built then
and we are celebrating thirty five years in October.
Speaker 1 (01:18):
Good for you.
Speaker 2 (01:19):
We had the opportunity to work with community groups and
leaders to make it happen, and what we made happen
was expanding the house and renovating the original house. So
we are now going to provide support for twenty seven
families each night. Between the Pittsburgh House and Morgantown, it'll
be one hundred and one family.
Speaker 1 (01:38):
Wow, that's e for I know that's great and your
expansion is phenomenal for the community, but that actually means
more work for you guys.
Speaker 2 (01:47):
Right, well, it does. But you know, our mission is
to support the families in their time of need and
when they are seeking medical care for their children who
have various health issues. It is a true blessing to
be part of that and be there to support them,
and it's really important that we're there.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
Well, let's back up a little bit for those who
may not be familiar. Can you describe the mission of
Ronald McDonald House of Pittsburgh and Morgantown.
Speaker 2 (02:14):
Yes, So we are a facility that provides a place
for families to stay. That could be mom and dad, grandparents, guardians.
You know, the family dynamic is very different today depending
on who's available to support the child. So we provide
a place to stay. Beyond that, we try to think
(02:35):
of every aspect stay at the houses. So we have
the twenty seven rooms in Morgantown the seventy four apartments
in Pittsburgh. They are both very close to the hospitals
that we support. Okay, and so.
Speaker 1 (02:48):
For people who aren't familiar, the connection with Ronald McDonald
House and all the right right.
Speaker 2 (02:53):
And so when you're seeking medical care, whether it's in
Pittsburgh or Morgantown, the house is available for you to stay.
So we provide a place for you to rest, to
sleep overnight, We provide meals, We have laundry services, we
have pet therapy, We have just about anything you can
think of, or at least we tried.
Speaker 1 (03:15):
Well, pet therapy was not something I was thinking of,
but you know, if you're willing to supply the care,
I can imagine you would try to facilitate that.
Speaker 2 (03:25):
Oh my gosh, it's such a well received program. I mean,
just think about it, because we don't only have in
patients in the houses. We have outpatients that may be
going to a clinic appointment and then the rest of
the day they have to participate in activity. So we
have craft activities, we have movie nights, and like I said,
we have pet therapy, so they come in. It's volunteers
(03:46):
that bring their pets in and the kiddos and parents
can hang out. In Pittsburgh, we have Chloe. She's a
great Pyrenees and she is beautiful dog. Yes, and she
is so gent.
Speaker 1 (04:00):
They're so sweet. They're sweet dogs, they.
Speaker 2 (04:01):
Are, and she even dresses up for us and our
little two twos. It's hilarious.
Speaker 1 (04:07):
Now they can be very protective dogs as well.
Speaker 2 (04:10):
Yes, she is very kind. Her handler is just wonderful.
Has been coming to the house gosh, probably over five
years now. So it's a really well received program. And
it just we try to think of those moments where
you can just forget about your reality, because it's stressful
(04:32):
having a sick child, right and going through that process,
not knowing sometimes what the next day brings. So to
have our little feather friends or furry friends is it
just is it's really really special for them.
Speaker 1 (04:46):
I think we all need a little pet therapy, but
especially those who are pet owners. You know, every day,
a little pet therapy always works. Yes, So where do
you where do they? Where do the patients find you
or how do you find them? How to give us
the connection?
Speaker 2 (05:02):
Yes, So we have very good relationships with our clinical partners,
whether it's Children's Hospital in Pittsburgh or any pediatric facility
in Pittsburgh, and then in Morgantown it's WU Medicine Children's.
We work closely with the social workers of the hospital
and so they will provide information to the families if
they know they're from out of town and need a
(05:23):
place to stay. In Pittsburgh, we have a lot of
international families, as you may suspect because of the transplant
program they have and also national you know, it's interesting.
Over the years that I've been there, which is fourteen,
we've seen a shift where folks don't necessarily accept what
(05:43):
their local physicians say, or because of the reputation of
the medical community that we have in both communities. Locally,
their physicians may be in Kansas City or Iowa will
recommend them to come and seek care here, or they
choose to do it on their own because they're not
(06:03):
satisfied with what they're being told at their local hospital
or physician's office. So we do see a lot of
people traveling for medical care today, especially.
Speaker 1 (06:13):
Here to Pittsburgh. Yes, Morgantown area. Yeah, now I have
more questions about the organization, but I don't want to
get too far without mentioning some of the fundraiser events
that you have coming up in just a couple of weeks.
June fourteenth, it's the twenty twenty five high Mark Walk
for a Healthy Community at Stay A tell us just
briefly what's shows are.
Speaker 2 (06:33):
It's a great opportunity for you to get out enjoy
the outside fundraise. People can sponsor you to walk and
so all those dollars come back to the charity. And
we've been involved for over ten years with this event.
High Mark facilitates the overarching administration of it and a
lot of nonprofits in the area participate. But it's always
(06:56):
great to have our own teams for RMHC. So I
hope a lot of people come out to support us.
Speaker 1 (07:01):
And of course, you know, you don't want to wait
too long without having another fundraiser. Two days later, on
June sixteenth, you have the Big Mac Open and that's
a Valley Brook Country Club. Good news and bad news.
First of bad news, actually it's more good news, but
it's it's sold out.
Speaker 2 (07:20):
It's sold out.
Speaker 1 (07:21):
But you can still you can if you if you
want to help the organization, you can still participate in
the raffles.
Speaker 2 (07:28):
Yes, we have an online auction actually, and it's so
you don't have to attend the event to participate, and
we have some really well.
Speaker 1 (07:35):
We can't sold out unless you go. That's very true.
Speaker 2 (07:41):
You go.
Speaker 1 (07:42):
If you're going to have problems, those are the problems
that have to have a sold out charity event.
Speaker 2 (07:46):
Absolutely, absolutely for sure. But the auction is great. I
mean it has trips like uh small overnight trips. It
has fource thems to different golf courses locally. We have
Southwest tickets that have been donated. So it's a really
nice auction. And so that's a great way for you
to still be involved.
Speaker 1 (08:05):
And where can I find the on our.
Speaker 2 (08:07):
Website which is www r m HC PGH hyphen MGTN
dot org.
Speaker 1 (08:17):
I know that's a lot, I know, or google Ronald
McDonald House Charities Pittsburgh and Morgantown again and then it's
the website as easy. Fine, okay, all right, So tell
me the history behind Ronald McDonald House and the connection
between Ronald McDonald House and the corporation McDonald's.
Speaker 2 (08:37):
Sure. So in nineteen seventy four, the first House was
developed or created in Philadelphia actually by a physician, doctor
Audrey Evans, and I'm a local owner operator from McDonald's
and the owner at that time of the Eagles. The
three individuals got together and Evans saw firsthand with her
(09:02):
cancer patients the need to have a place for families
to stay. They were sleeping on the floor at chop
They just didn't have the means to go to a hotel.
There were a lot of limitations and she saw that firsthand,
so she developed the first House's last year we celebrated
fifty years from the inception of the global organization that
(09:25):
it is today. So the Pittsburgh House was the seventh
house that opened in collaboration with the local owner operator MJ. Delagatti,
among others. Other business is.
Speaker 1 (09:39):
That associated with the family that created the big match.
Speaker 2 (09:43):
It is it is yes and his son Michael is
on our board of directors today, long history for the family,
very grateful for all they do, as well as all
the McDonald's owner operators locally and really truly across the country.
They all support the local chapter in their state and city,
(10:04):
so we're really fortunate from that perspective. So fast forward,
the original house in Pittsburgh was ten rooms and now
we are at seventy four apartments, so that tells you
the growth over the time span. And that was from
nineteen seventy nine to today, so that just gives you
a little bit of history. And the Steelers were also
(10:25):
involved with the original house in Pittsburgh as well as
the McDonald's. And then doctor Elbow was our physician liaison.
He was also a noncologist here at Children's.
Speaker 1 (10:36):
And when did you kind of expand into from Pittsburgh
to Pittsburgh and Morgantown.
Speaker 2 (10:41):
So in twenty eighteen we merged with that entity. It
just made sense from a business perspective. You know, I
always like to say, if you're running a nonprofit, you
really need to run it as a for profit business
or you're not going to be here tomorrow. So it
just made sense.
Speaker 1 (10:57):
It makes sense to give eleanor more responsibility.
Speaker 2 (11:01):
Well okay, but now you know what, I am really
so appreciative of the opportunity that was given to me
fourteen years ago to really work at such a wonderful
organization with such a wonderful mission, and it has been
(11:23):
my pleasure to enhance it, to grow it over the years.
And just this past December we merged with Army C Eerie,
so we will be looking into potentially expanding services in that.
Speaker 1 (11:37):
Area and expanding the website to include Yes, yes, so
it's it's Pittsburgh, Morgantown and Erie. Yes. Yeah, that's a
lot of miles for bread it is.
Speaker 2 (11:49):
I'm in the car quite a bit.
Speaker 1 (11:50):
I will say, Well that's exciting stuff. So tell us,
so what what what made you bring Eerie in? I mean,
it's fairly close to Pittsburgh.
Speaker 2 (11:58):
But yeah, but you know, we we provide a lot
of support to Eerie families. When you think about it,
in that area, they do have pediatric care, but it's
not as robust as Pittsburgh, for example, and we are
seeing pediatric care in that area expanding. Now it may
not be a hospital per se, but outpatient services. So
(12:19):
one of the opportunities we're thinking about is maybe having
a family room in that area, which would allow families
when they go for their clinic appointments, if it's a
long day of testing, for example, they would have a
respite in the family room. We would provide snacks, a
place to just hang out. There'll be toys, you know,
games for the kids to play. Again, just thinking about
(12:42):
giving them a little bit of peace and comfort while
they're going through the process.
Speaker 1 (12:47):
Can you do me a favor, I want you to
paint a picture of I mean, every family in every
situation is different, but for people who aren't familiar with
what the Ronald McDonald House does, can you kind of
paint a picture of what you would provide a family.
Speaker 2 (13:05):
Sure, So at either house, when they come in, they
go through a process of orientation. We provide them with
a welcome bag and it has various things like toilet, trees,
a quilt, snacks, things that they may need for their
initial visit and check in. Then they're given a tour
(13:28):
of the facility so they are very comfortable where the
laundry room is, where the play areas are. If their
siblings involved, you know, we need to think about them
as well. Just generally making sure that they're comfortable sort of.
I don't want to refer to us as a hotel,
but similar to a hotel, but just enhance it to
a whole other level with compassion. The team that I
(13:51):
work with are amazing. Every single one comes to the
table with compassion, and that's what we're about. We are
all about out making sure that the parents are taken
care of because we truly believe it's a family situation.
Keeping the family close is what we try to do
(14:12):
to the best of our abilities. We do feel that
that impacts the healing process.
Speaker 1 (14:17):
It's a holistic way of essing that you know, if
the child is ill, it makes the whole family a
little bit more comfortable and it allows that child to
just concentrate on unhealing.
Speaker 2 (14:31):
Correct and we are so we have so much gratitude
for the medical care that is provided in both communities.
We're really fortunate. I mean, when you think about people
coming to us in our community for their care that
may live in California or wherever, you know when they're
coming here, and if we're able to provide them that
extra support and comfort, then that's what it's all about.
(14:55):
And that can be very scary think about this too.
When we have international families there sometimes there's a language barrier,
so we have interpreters. But think about that, coming to
a foreign country seeking care for your sick child, which
there are so many unknowns depending on what the diagnose
diagnosis may be. That's a scary and daunting situation. And
(15:20):
when you walk into the Ronald McDonald house and you
see somebody with a smile on their face. I don't
know about you, Johnny, but that just calms everyone down
and takes you down to another level, like, Okay, I
think we're going to be okay, it's going to be okay.
Speaker 1 (15:32):
How many beds are in the rooms?
Speaker 2 (15:36):
Well, we have in Pittsburgh it's a queen size bed
because it's a mini apartment and then the couch folds
out in two, so it's for occupancy for Pittsburgh. In Morgantown,
we have queen size beds because it's a bedroom more
like a hotel. But you do have your own bathroom.
Speaker 1 (15:54):
I briefly kind of asked you, you know, the the
corporate McDonald's is more partnership. It's not like they present
you know, it's a multi billion dollar business. It's not
like they present you with a big check and say
eleanor do you do whatever you do? It's it's it's more.
They help facilitate a lot of things for you.
Speaker 2 (16:16):
They really do, and that relationship is extremely important and
we leverage it to the best of our ability, and
so do they. And it's I always like to say
it takes two to tango. It truly does. In this instance,
You're right, they don't write us a check. But that's
okay because the cultivation of the relationships from the past
(16:38):
to now has a significant impact beyond what you would think.
They leverage their relationships with their vendors. For example, Coca Cola,
they provide a vending machine with water and juice and
the sodas. They donate everything ask us to charge fifty cents,
which is you know, highway robbery when you think about it, right,
(17:01):
I mean, that's like nothing in today's world. And then
but still we take those dollars or those cents and
put it back into operations. So it's a completely donated program.
You know, we have a campaign with mister Malkin and
he donates seven hundred and ten dollars for every point
that he earns. So this year, as in the last.
Speaker 1 (17:23):
Couple of years, mister Malkin did because he's close to retire.
Speaker 2 (17:27):
But we know, well I don't know that I can
call him geno, but I guess I just did. But anyway,
so so, but anyway, given our relationship with McDonald's, what's
really cool is the co op, which is the local
owner operators of the local McDonald restaurants, they matched his donation.
So it's those type of situations that we value greatly.
(17:51):
So interesting enough, like I couldn't have planned this if
I wanted to. Based on his season, he earned enough
to donate thirty five thousand, thirty five five hundred dollars right,
the co op matched it. If you add that up,
guess what it is? Seventy seventy one thousand dollars. Can
we play?
Speaker 1 (18:12):
Come on?
Speaker 2 (18:13):
Come on, honest, honest, that's comes on. So that relationship
with McDonald's is key for that. That's just one example,
and I could go on and on of other examples.
Speaker 1 (18:25):
Well, I'm going to ask you to expand on some
of those examples, but I don't want to get too
far without mentioning some of the events that are happening
just around the corner. You've got the twenty twenty five
high Mark Walk for a Healthy Community June fourteenth at
Stay j E. Starts early in the morning eight thirty well,
which is actually late for me because I usually get
(18:46):
up real early. But you've been participating in this and
over the last decade or so. And if somebody wants
to participate or donate, what's what do they have to do?
Speaker 2 (18:55):
Go to our website. We have a link and you
can create your own team, which is kind of fun,
and fundraise. So folks, your friends, your colleagues, they can
all sponsor you and you can even actually virtually walk.
If you can't for whatever the reason, attend the actual event,
you can still fundraise and participate in that way.
Speaker 1 (19:16):
And then the Big Mac Open coming up on June sixteenth,
Valley Brook Country Club. I would love to get tickets.
Is that possible, Elean, It is not.
Speaker 2 (19:26):
I'm sorry, we're sold out, but it's a great event,
so maybe next year.
Speaker 1 (19:30):
I truly love your laugh. You have such a great
sense to you. Yeah, if you're going to have problems,
the problems that have is that you have a sold
out fundraiser, which is a great thing, but you can
still help by participating with the auctions and the raffles
and things like that, right, and that's available at the website.
(19:51):
I'm gonna I dare you, I dare you to give
me the website again.
Speaker 2 (19:57):
I think your eye is better.
Speaker 1 (19:58):
Google House Charities Pittsburgh and Morgantown. You'll find the website.
In fact, it's right on the front page. You can
see the big mac open click on that read more. Okay,
let's kind of reset the table for people who are
just tuning in the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Pittsburgh
and Morgantown. Kind of give us a thumbnail sketch of
(20:21):
what exactly you do.
Speaker 2 (20:22):
Sure, we provide a place for families to stay while
they're seeking medical care, and whether it's in Pittsburgh or Morgantown.
And what that means is providing them a room or
an apartment that they can sleep and rest. We provide
hot meals, We provide laundry facilities, activities, we have pet therapy.
As I mentioned, just trying to think of all the
(20:43):
little things that would make their stay a little bit
more comfortable and expressing our compassion for what they're going through.
Speaker 1 (20:53):
How important is community you support through donations and volunteers
and partnerships. How important.
Speaker 2 (21:01):
That is extremely important, extremely our operating budget. When I
say this, it's kind of funny because on one hand
it's kind of well, that's a lot of money. But
when you think about what we do, we really streamline
and we're very efficient financially. Our budget's two point five
million every year. And when you think about servicing one
(21:22):
hundred and one families, that's a lot of families. And
then we have our carmobile program too, which we support
at so our caremobile program is basically an office on wheels.
It's a big truck they like to call it. It
has two exam rooms.
Speaker 1 (21:40):
Of course does we're going to serve as Pittsburgh and Morganda.
We're going to accept eerie. Now we're going to put
it on wheels and let's hit the road.
Speaker 2 (21:50):
Of course, Hey, you know this guy's the limit, Johnny.
But now we have a great relationship with Children's Hospital
Pittsburgh and they pull the clinicians because we do not
provide clinical care, but we support it monetarily. We purchase
the caremobile itself, which is a half a million dollar
proposition there, and it's a beautiful vehicle. We just replaced
(22:14):
it in twenty nineteen with the help of a lot
of community folks. So again getting back to the importance
of community giving. We could not facilitate some of these
programs without the support of our friends. That is crucial
because we raise every single penny every year.
Speaker 1 (22:33):
When we talk about donations, like monetary donations, either through
the different walks you have or the Big mac Open,
or you can donate directly to the website. But you
talked about having like a care package when they first
come in and toilet paper, you can actually donate things
like that as well.
Speaker 2 (22:53):
Right absolutely, we have a wish list for each house
and on there are items that you can purchase, and
you can even purchase them through an online service and
have them delivered if that's more convenient for you. And
what are some of the things that you need, Just
like you said paper products, we need pillows, you know.
I like to always say, think about the things you
(23:16):
need in your house. That's what we need in our house,
but just expand it probably ten times. So there's a
lot of opportunities on the website through our wish lists,
and that's a great option for folks if you can't
directly be involved. We'd love to have people come to
the house and volunteer. We have a very robust meal
(23:37):
program that's a great opportunity for not only individuals but corporations.
You can use it as a team building experience. So
there's a lot of options. I always like to say
the sky's the limit. So if you have an idea,
contact us, we'll see if we can.
Speaker 1 (23:52):
Make it work. What kind of creative ideas have people
presented to you for so fundraising?
Speaker 2 (23:58):
We have a group that as a ice skate projects
program and they basically host and similar to the high
Mark Walk where you can sponsor a squawker, but you
can sponsor a skater. Gotcha, So that's an option. We
have a gentleman that and I didn't know what this
(24:19):
was when he came to us, but a four to
one two ruck run and apparently you put like a
heavy backpack on and you run through the woods. Who
knew he fundraised and has done it for several years.
It's just bringing awareness as well as the monetary aspect.
(24:40):
But I both are important to us because it is
important to make sure that people are aware that we
exist in what we do, which makes it easier for
that understanding and that fundraising to happen.
Speaker 1 (24:53):
We mentioned kind of off the air of the volunteers
that you're talking about some sort of meal preparay. Yes,
what is that?
Speaker 2 (25:01):
So you know, just like you have to eat every day,
our families do too, and we like to take care
of that for them. It can be expensive to go
out to a restaurant all the time, and although the
rest of the hotels have cafeterias, you know, you like
to change it up, right, So we have a a
learn and serve program where we have a special friend
(25:21):
of the house, a volunteer named Donna. She loves to cook,
and she comes in. She has established I don't know
seven eight different meals. Your group can pick which meal
they would like to make. She does all the grocery shopping.
Your group up to ten will come into the house.
She will teach you how to make the meal, and
then you have the opportunity to serve it to the families.
(25:44):
So it's a win win for everyone. It's about two
fifty three hundred dollars to feed the families in the
house for a meal, So you know, she's wonderful. Everyone
loves it and like chicken Cardo on blue is one
of the items. We're not just talking hot dogs hamburgers here. Yeah,
she's got a whole other level of meal on trace.
Speaker 1 (26:06):
Of course, we're talking with Eleanorriegal of Ronald McDonald House
of Pittsburgh and Morgantown. You mentioned a while ago that
how important your team is. Can you elaborate and tell
us about your team?
Speaker 2 (26:20):
Yes, So we have a few different departments. We have
the development department, which is key clearly right, if you
don't have money, then you're not going to have a mission.
We have operations that take care of the mission every day,
the programs day to day, and then of course have
the financial piece because again, as I mentioned, you need
to run it as a business or you're not going
(26:42):
to be here tomorrow. So we are very prudent in
our processes and making sure you know accounts, payable and
receivable and all of those things. They are all tremendous individuals.
I am so grateful for the team that I work with.
We never miss a beat. They are incredible. The compassion
(27:04):
that I see on a day to day basis most
importantly for the families that we support, but also for
one another. Everyone cares about their peers and who they're
working with, even if you're not in the same department.
There's such a I can't even think of the right
word to justify what I see every day. And it's
(27:27):
a true pleasure. I can't tell you how many times
I am told by the team, I love my job.
I love coming to work. Not everyone can say.
Speaker 1 (27:38):
That because they're making a difference.
Speaker 2 (27:40):
They are every single day. They are making a difference.
Sometimes it's small and sometimes it's massive, depending on the situation.
And I remember when I first started. I would go
home and tell my husband this amazing thing happened, and
I said, you never hear about this on the news,
and he's like okay. And I would come home the
(28:00):
next day and you can't believe this happened and he's like, okay,
I said, no, that place is magic. It is magical.
Something happens positively every single day. How many people can
say that in their work environment, that is fantastic. It
is awesome.
Speaker 1 (28:18):
How important are the stores, the restaurants to your mission.
Speaker 2 (28:22):
They are very important because they bring awareness and how
they do that is we have a round up program
with the local McDonald's restaurants, and so when you go
through the drive through, they'll ask you if you want
to round up, and yes, you do, all right.
Speaker 1 (28:39):
Very quickly, you have a couple of fundraisers coming up.
Let's mention those.
Speaker 2 (28:43):
Yep, the Big Mac Open. We're excited. It's sold out,
but you can still participate.
Speaker 1 (28:48):
That's what they're talking. Yeah, and then the high Mark event.
Speaker 2 (28:53):
Yes, that's June fourteenth. That way you can participate, whether
virtually or actually walking again, another fundraiser. It's all online,
so it's easy to find and easy to participate in.
Speaker 1 (29:04):
And please participate in the fundraising because Eleanor is going
to be spreading, you know, just to start in Morgantown, now, Eerie,
are you going to continue to expand?
Speaker 2 (29:15):
I don't know, maybe take a moment, how about that?
Now it's all good for the families.
Speaker 1 (29:21):
It's an absolute pleasure. I don't know how you you
you keep getting younger every time you come. You look fantastic.
So thank you so much, and good luck with your
your fundraiser is good with good luck with your organization.
It's always a pleasure. Thank you all.
Speaker 2 (29:34):
Thank you so much.
Speaker 1 (29:35):
As always, If you have any comments, concerns, or an
idea for a future program, please email us from this
radio station's website. Johnny Heartwell, thank you so much for listening.
Speaker 3 (29:49):
Hey, life doesn't stop when cancer starts. Some don't make
it to treatment simply because they don't have a ride.
You can change that. Volunteer to drive with the American
Cancer Society Road to Recovery program. Visit cancer dot org
slash drive to learn more.
And welcome in. This is a public affairs program shedding
the light on the interest, issues and concerns of the
greater Pittsburgh area. Good morning. My name is Johnny heart Well.
I'm your host and in studio and old friend Eleanor
Reegal of Ronald McDonald House of Pittsburgh and Morgantown. Good
to see you. First of all, you look amazing.
Speaker 2 (00:20):
No, thank you, that's a no, it's lady.
Speaker 1 (00:22):
But trust me, everybody, you look fantastic. How are you?
Speaker 2 (00:26):
I'm great. I could not be better. Actually, there's just
so many wonderful things going on.
Speaker 1 (00:31):
You know, with Ronald McDonald House. It's unfortunate that we
have nothing to talk about. You have nothing going on ever.
Speaker 2 (00:39):
Ever, that's right, That's why I'm running around right right,
crazy lady, But no, it's all great opportunities for the families.
Speaker 1 (00:47):
Hopefully we can fit all the things that you have
going on in this one program. And you do have
a lot of things going on. You have a couple
of charity events just around the corner. But I want
to kind of last time I talk to you, I
heard that there was some expansion going down in Morgantown.
Is that finished? Is that still progressing and how is
how is that going on?
Speaker 2 (01:07):
Oh, Johnny, it's so exciting. It is so exciting. That
chapter started in nineteen ninety. The house was built then
and we are celebrating thirty five years in October.
Speaker 1 (01:18):
Good for you.
Speaker 2 (01:19):
We had the opportunity to work with community groups and
leaders to make it happen, and what we made happen
was expanding the house and renovating the original house. So
we are now going to provide support for twenty seven
families each night. Between the Pittsburgh House and Morgantown, it'll
be one hundred and one family.
Speaker 1 (01:38):
Wow, that's e for I know that's great and your
expansion is phenomenal for the community, but that actually means
more work for you guys.
Speaker 2 (01:47):
Right, well, it does. But you know, our mission is
to support the families in their time of need and
when they are seeking medical care for their children who
have various health issues. It is a true blessing to
be part of that and be there to support them,
and it's really important that we're there.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
Well, let's back up a little bit for those who
may not be familiar. Can you describe the mission of
Ronald McDonald House of Pittsburgh and Morgantown.
Speaker 2 (02:14):
Yes, So we are a facility that provides a place
for families to stay. That could be mom and dad, grandparents, guardians.
You know, the family dynamic is very different today depending
on who's available to support the child. So we provide
a place to stay. Beyond that, we try to think
(02:35):
of every aspect stay at the houses. So we have
the twenty seven rooms in Morgantown the seventy four apartments
in Pittsburgh. They are both very close to the hospitals
that we support. Okay, and so.
Speaker 1 (02:48):
For people who aren't familiar, the connection with Ronald McDonald
House and all the right right.
Speaker 2 (02:53):
And so when you're seeking medical care, whether it's in
Pittsburgh or Morgantown, the house is available for you to stay.
So we provide a place for you to rest, to
sleep overnight, We provide meals, We have laundry services, we
have pet therapy, We have just about anything you can
think of, or at least we tried.
Speaker 1 (03:15):
Well, pet therapy was not something I was thinking of,
but you know, if you're willing to supply the care,
I can imagine you would try to facilitate that.
Speaker 2 (03:25):
Oh my gosh, it's such a well received program. I mean,
just think about it, because we don't only have in
patients in the houses. We have outpatients that may be
going to a clinic appointment and then the rest of
the day they have to participate in activity. So we
have craft activities, we have movie nights, and like I said,
we have pet therapy, so they come in. It's volunteers
(03:46):
that bring their pets in and the kiddos and parents
can hang out. In Pittsburgh, we have Chloe. She's a
great Pyrenees and she is beautiful dog. Yes, and she
is so gent.
Speaker 1 (04:00):
They're so sweet. They're sweet dogs, they.
Speaker 2 (04:01):
Are, and she even dresses up for us and our
little two twos. It's hilarious.
Speaker 1 (04:07):
Now they can be very protective dogs as well.
Speaker 2 (04:10):
Yes, she is very kind. Her handler is just wonderful.
Has been coming to the house gosh, probably over five
years now. So it's a really well received program. And
it just we try to think of those moments where
you can just forget about your reality, because it's stressful
(04:32):
having a sick child, right and going through that process,
not knowing sometimes what the next day brings. So to
have our little feather friends or furry friends is it
just is it's really really special for them.
Speaker 1 (04:46):
I think we all need a little pet therapy, but
especially those who are pet owners. You know, every day,
a little pet therapy always works. Yes, So where do
you where do they? Where do the patients find you
or how do you find them? How to give us
the connection?
Speaker 2 (05:02):
Yes, So we have very good relationships with our clinical partners,
whether it's Children's Hospital in Pittsburgh or any pediatric facility
in Pittsburgh, and then in Morgantown it's WU Medicine Children's.
We work closely with the social workers of the hospital
and so they will provide information to the families if
they know they're from out of town and need a
(05:23):
place to stay. In Pittsburgh, we have a lot of
international families, as you may suspect because of the transplant
program they have and also national you know, it's interesting.
Over the years that I've been there, which is fourteen,
we've seen a shift where folks don't necessarily accept what
(05:43):
their local physicians say, or because of the reputation of
the medical community that we have in both communities. Locally,
their physicians may be in Kansas City or Iowa will
recommend them to come and seek care here, or they
choose to do it on their own because they're not
(06:03):
satisfied with what they're being told at their local hospital
or physician's office. So we do see a lot of
people traveling for medical care today, especially.
Speaker 1 (06:13):
Here to Pittsburgh. Yes, Morgantown area. Yeah, now I have
more questions about the organization, but I don't want to
get too far without mentioning some of the fundraiser events
that you have coming up in just a couple of weeks.
June fourteenth, it's the twenty twenty five high Mark Walk
for a Healthy Community at Stay A tell us just
briefly what's shows are.
Speaker 2 (06:33):
It's a great opportunity for you to get out enjoy
the outside fundraise. People can sponsor you to walk and
so all those dollars come back to the charity. And
we've been involved for over ten years with this event.
High Mark facilitates the overarching administration of it and a
lot of nonprofits in the area participate. But it's always
(06:56):
great to have our own teams for RMHC. So I
hope a lot of people come out to support us.
Speaker 1 (07:01):
And of course, you know, you don't want to wait
too long without having another fundraiser. Two days later, on
June sixteenth, you have the Big Mac Open and that's
a Valley Brook Country Club. Good news and bad news.
First of bad news, actually it's more good news, but
it's it's sold out.
Speaker 2 (07:20):
It's sold out.
Speaker 1 (07:21):
But you can still you can if you if you
want to help the organization, you can still participate in
the raffles.
Speaker 2 (07:28):
Yes, we have an online auction actually, and it's so
you don't have to attend the event to participate, and
we have some really well.
Speaker 1 (07:35):
We can't sold out unless you go. That's very true.
Speaker 2 (07:41):
You go.
Speaker 1 (07:42):
If you're going to have problems, those are the problems
that have to have a sold out charity event.
Speaker 2 (07:46):
Absolutely, absolutely for sure. But the auction is great. I
mean it has trips like uh small overnight trips. It
has fource thems to different golf courses locally. We have
Southwest tickets that have been donated. So it's a really
nice auction. And so that's a great way for you
to still be involved.
Speaker 1 (08:05):
And where can I find the on our.
Speaker 2 (08:07):
Website which is www r m HC PGH hyphen MGTN
dot org.
Speaker 1 (08:17):
I know that's a lot, I know, or google Ronald
McDonald House Charities Pittsburgh and Morgantown again and then it's
the website as easy. Fine, okay, all right, So tell
me the history behind Ronald McDonald House and the connection
between Ronald McDonald House and the corporation McDonald's.
Speaker 2 (08:37):
Sure. So in nineteen seventy four, the first House was
developed or created in Philadelphia actually by a physician, doctor
Audrey Evans, and I'm a local owner operator from McDonald's
and the owner at that time of the Eagles. The
three individuals got together and Evans saw firsthand with her
(09:02):
cancer patients the need to have a place for families
to stay. They were sleeping on the floor at chop
They just didn't have the means to go to a hotel.
There were a lot of limitations and she saw that firsthand,
so she developed the first House's last year we celebrated
fifty years from the inception of the global organization that
(09:25):
it is today. So the Pittsburgh House was the seventh
house that opened in collaboration with the local owner operator MJ. Delagatti,
among others. Other business is.
Speaker 1 (09:39):
That associated with the family that created the big match.
Speaker 2 (09:43):
It is it is yes and his son Michael is
on our board of directors today, long history for the family,
very grateful for all they do, as well as all
the McDonald's owner operators locally and really truly across the country.
They all support the local chapter in their state and city,
(10:04):
so we're really fortunate from that perspective. So fast forward,
the original house in Pittsburgh was ten rooms and now
we are at seventy four apartments, so that tells you
the growth over the time span. And that was from
nineteen seventy nine to today, so that just gives you
a little bit of history. And the Steelers were also
(10:25):
involved with the original house in Pittsburgh as well as
the McDonald's. And then doctor Elbow was our physician liaison.
He was also a noncologist here at Children's.
Speaker 1 (10:36):
And when did you kind of expand into from Pittsburgh
to Pittsburgh and Morgantown.
Speaker 2 (10:41):
So in twenty eighteen we merged with that entity. It
just made sense from a business perspective. You know, I
always like to say, if you're running a nonprofit, you
really need to run it as a for profit business
or you're not going to be here tomorrow. So it
just made sense.
Speaker 1 (10:57):
It makes sense to give eleanor more responsibility.
Speaker 2 (11:01):
Well okay, but now you know what, I am really
so appreciative of the opportunity that was given to me
fourteen years ago to really work at such a wonderful
organization with such a wonderful mission, and it has been
(11:23):
my pleasure to enhance it, to grow it over the years.
And just this past December we merged with Army C Eerie,
so we will be looking into potentially expanding services in that.
Speaker 1 (11:37):
Area and expanding the website to include Yes, yes, so
it's it's Pittsburgh, Morgantown and Erie. Yes. Yeah, that's a
lot of miles for bread it is.
Speaker 2 (11:49):
I'm in the car quite a bit.
Speaker 1 (11:50):
I will say, Well that's exciting stuff. So tell us,
so what what what made you bring Eerie in? I mean,
it's fairly close to Pittsburgh.
Speaker 2 (11:58):
But yeah, but you know, we we provide a lot
of support to Eerie families. When you think about it,
in that area, they do have pediatric care, but it's
not as robust as Pittsburgh, for example, and we are
seeing pediatric care in that area expanding. Now it may
not be a hospital per se, but outpatient services. So
(12:19):
one of the opportunities we're thinking about is maybe having
a family room in that area, which would allow families
when they go for their clinic appointments, if it's a
long day of testing, for example, they would have a
respite in the family room. We would provide snacks, a
place to just hang out. There'll be toys, you know,
games for the kids to play. Again, just thinking about
(12:42):
giving them a little bit of peace and comfort while
they're going through the process.
Speaker 1 (12:47):
Can you do me a favor, I want you to
paint a picture of I mean, every family in every
situation is different, but for people who aren't familiar with
what the Ronald McDonald House does, can you kind of
paint a picture of what you would provide a family.
Speaker 2 (13:05):
Sure, So at either house, when they come in, they
go through a process of orientation. We provide them with
a welcome bag and it has various things like toilet, trees,
a quilt, snacks, things that they may need for their
initial visit and check in. Then they're given a tour
(13:28):
of the facility so they are very comfortable where the
laundry room is, where the play areas are. If their
siblings involved, you know, we need to think about them
as well. Just generally making sure that they're comfortable sort of.
I don't want to refer to us as a hotel,
but similar to a hotel, but just enhance it to
a whole other level with compassion. The team that I
(13:51):
work with are amazing. Every single one comes to the
table with compassion, and that's what we're about. We are
all about out making sure that the parents are taken
care of because we truly believe it's a family situation.
Keeping the family close is what we try to do
(14:12):
to the best of our abilities. We do feel that
that impacts the healing process.
Speaker 1 (14:17):
It's a holistic way of essing that you know, if
the child is ill, it makes the whole family a
little bit more comfortable and it allows that child to
just concentrate on unhealing.
Speaker 2 (14:31):
Correct and we are so we have so much gratitude
for the medical care that is provided in both communities.
We're really fortunate. I mean, when you think about people
coming to us in our community for their care that
may live in California or wherever, you know when they're
coming here, and if we're able to provide them that
extra support and comfort, then that's what it's all about.
(14:55):
And that can be very scary think about this too.
When we have international families there sometimes there's a language barrier,
so we have interpreters. But think about that, coming to
a foreign country seeking care for your sick child, which
there are so many unknowns depending on what the diagnose
diagnosis may be. That's a scary and daunting situation. And
(15:20):
when you walk into the Ronald McDonald house and you
see somebody with a smile on their face. I don't
know about you, Johnny, but that just calms everyone down
and takes you down to another level, like, Okay, I
think we're going to be okay, it's going to be okay.
Speaker 1 (15:32):
How many beds are in the rooms?
Speaker 2 (15:36):
Well, we have in Pittsburgh it's a queen size bed
because it's a mini apartment and then the couch folds
out in two, so it's for occupancy for Pittsburgh. In Morgantown,
we have queen size beds because it's a bedroom more
like a hotel. But you do have your own bathroom.
Speaker 1 (15:54):
I briefly kind of asked you, you know, the the
corporate McDonald's is more partnership. It's not like they present
you know, it's a multi billion dollar business. It's not
like they present you with a big check and say
eleanor do you do whatever you do? It's it's it's more.
They help facilitate a lot of things for you.
Speaker 2 (16:16):
They really do, and that relationship is extremely important and
we leverage it to the best of our ability, and
so do they. And it's I always like to say
it takes two to tango. It truly does. In this instance,
You're right, they don't write us a check. But that's
okay because the cultivation of the relationships from the past
(16:38):
to now has a significant impact beyond what you would think.
They leverage their relationships with their vendors. For example, Coca Cola,
they provide a vending machine with water and juice and
the sodas. They donate everything ask us to charge fifty cents,
which is you know, highway robbery when you think about it, right,
(17:01):
I mean, that's like nothing in today's world. And then
but still we take those dollars or those cents and
put it back into operations. So it's a completely donated program.
You know, we have a campaign with mister Malkin and
he donates seven hundred and ten dollars for every point
that he earns. So this year, as in the last.
Speaker 1 (17:23):
Couple of years, mister Malkin did because he's close to retire.
Speaker 2 (17:27):
But we know, well I don't know that I can
call him geno, but I guess I just did. But anyway,
so so, but anyway, given our relationship with McDonald's, what's
really cool is the co op, which is the local
owner operators of the local McDonald restaurants, they matched his donation.
So it's those type of situations that we value greatly.
(17:51):
So interesting enough, like I couldn't have planned this if
I wanted to. Based on his season, he earned enough
to donate thirty five thousand, thirty five five hundred dollars right,
the co op matched it. If you add that up,
guess what it is? Seventy seventy one thousand dollars. Can
we play?
Speaker 1 (18:12):
Come on?
Speaker 2 (18:13):
Come on, honest, honest, that's comes on. So that relationship
with McDonald's is key for that. That's just one example,
and I could go on and on of other examples.
Speaker 1 (18:25):
Well, I'm going to ask you to expand on some
of those examples, but I don't want to get too
far without mentioning some of the events that are happening
just around the corner. You've got the twenty twenty five
high Mark Walk for a Healthy Community June fourteenth at
Stay j E. Starts early in the morning eight thirty well,
which is actually late for me because I usually get
(18:46):
up real early. But you've been participating in this and
over the last decade or so. And if somebody wants
to participate or donate, what's what do they have to do?
Speaker 2 (18:55):
Go to our website. We have a link and you
can create your own team, which is kind of fun,
and fundraise. So folks, your friends, your colleagues, they can
all sponsor you and you can even actually virtually walk.
If you can't for whatever the reason, attend the actual event,
you can still fundraise and participate in that way.
Speaker 1 (19:16):
And then the Big Mac Open coming up on June sixteenth,
Valley Brook Country Club. I would love to get tickets.
Is that possible, Elean, It is not.
Speaker 2 (19:26):
I'm sorry, we're sold out, but it's a great event,
so maybe next year.
Speaker 1 (19:30):
I truly love your laugh. You have such a great
sense to you. Yeah, if you're going to have problems,
the problems that have is that you have a sold
out fundraiser, which is a great thing, but you can
still help by participating with the auctions and the raffles
and things like that, right, and that's available at the website.
(19:51):
I'm gonna I dare you, I dare you to give
me the website again.
Speaker 2 (19:57):
I think your eye is better.
Speaker 1 (19:58):
Google House Charities Pittsburgh and Morgantown. You'll find the website.
In fact, it's right on the front page. You can
see the big mac open click on that read more. Okay,
let's kind of reset the table for people who are
just tuning in the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Pittsburgh
and Morgantown. Kind of give us a thumbnail sketch of
(20:21):
what exactly you do.
Speaker 2 (20:22):
Sure, we provide a place for families to stay while
they're seeking medical care, and whether it's in Pittsburgh or Morgantown.
And what that means is providing them a room or
an apartment that they can sleep and rest. We provide
hot meals, We provide laundry facilities, activities, we have pet therapy.
As I mentioned, just trying to think of all the
(20:43):
little things that would make their stay a little bit
more comfortable and expressing our compassion for what they're going through.
Speaker 1 (20:53):
How important is community you support through donations and volunteers
and partnerships. How important.
Speaker 2 (21:01):
That is extremely important, extremely our operating budget. When I
say this, it's kind of funny because on one hand
it's kind of well, that's a lot of money. But
when you think about what we do, we really streamline
and we're very efficient financially. Our budget's two point five
million every year. And when you think about servicing one
(21:22):
hundred and one families, that's a lot of families. And
then we have our carmobile program too, which we support
at so our caremobile program is basically an office on wheels.
It's a big truck they like to call it. It
has two exam rooms.
Speaker 1 (21:40):
Of course does we're going to serve as Pittsburgh and Morganda.
We're going to accept eerie. Now we're going to put
it on wheels and let's hit the road.
Speaker 2 (21:50):
Of course, Hey, you know this guy's the limit, Johnny.
But now we have a great relationship with Children's Hospital
Pittsburgh and they pull the clinicians because we do not
provide clinical care, but we support it monetarily. We purchase
the caremobile itself, which is a half a million dollar
proposition there, and it's a beautiful vehicle. We just replaced
(22:14):
it in twenty nineteen with the help of a lot
of community folks. So again getting back to the importance
of community giving. We could not facilitate some of these
programs without the support of our friends. That is crucial
because we raise every single penny every year.
Speaker 1 (22:33):
When we talk about donations, like monetary donations, either through
the different walks you have or the Big mac Open,
or you can donate directly to the website. But you
talked about having like a care package when they first
come in and toilet paper, you can actually donate things
like that as well.
Speaker 2 (22:53):
Right absolutely, we have a wish list for each house
and on there are items that you can purchase, and
you can even purchase them through an online service and
have them delivered if that's more convenient for you. And
what are some of the things that you need, Just
like you said paper products, we need pillows, you know.
I like to always say, think about the things you
(23:16):
need in your house. That's what we need in our house,
but just expand it probably ten times. So there's a
lot of opportunities on the website through our wish lists,
and that's a great option for folks if you can't
directly be involved. We'd love to have people come to
the house and volunteer. We have a very robust meal
(23:37):
program that's a great opportunity for not only individuals but corporations.
You can use it as a team building experience. So
there's a lot of options. I always like to say
the sky's the limit. So if you have an idea,
contact us, we'll see if we can.
Speaker 1 (23:52):
Make it work. What kind of creative ideas have people
presented to you for so fundraising?
Speaker 2 (23:58):
We have a group that as a ice skate projects
program and they basically host and similar to the high
Mark Walk where you can sponsor a squawker, but you
can sponsor a skater. Gotcha, So that's an option. We
have a gentleman that and I didn't know what this
(24:19):
was when he came to us, but a four to
one two ruck run and apparently you put like a
heavy backpack on and you run through the woods. Who
knew he fundraised and has done it for several years.
It's just bringing awareness as well as the monetary aspect.
(24:40):
But I both are important to us because it is
important to make sure that people are aware that we
exist in what we do, which makes it easier for
that understanding and that fundraising to happen.
Speaker 1 (24:53):
We mentioned kind of off the air of the volunteers
that you're talking about some sort of meal preparay. Yes,
what is that?
Speaker 2 (25:01):
So you know, just like you have to eat every day,
our families do too, and we like to take care
of that for them. It can be expensive to go
out to a restaurant all the time, and although the
rest of the hotels have cafeterias, you know, you like
to change it up, right, So we have a a
learn and serve program where we have a special friend
(25:21):
of the house, a volunteer named Donna. She loves to cook,
and she comes in. She has established I don't know
seven eight different meals. Your group can pick which meal
they would like to make. She does all the grocery shopping.
Your group up to ten will come into the house.
She will teach you how to make the meal, and
then you have the opportunity to serve it to the families.
(25:44):
So it's a win win for everyone. It's about two
fifty three hundred dollars to feed the families in the
house for a meal, So you know, she's wonderful. Everyone
loves it and like chicken Cardo on blue is one
of the items. We're not just talking hot dogs hamburgers here. Yeah,
she's got a whole other level of meal on trace.
Speaker 1 (26:06):
Of course, we're talking with Eleanorriegal of Ronald McDonald House
of Pittsburgh and Morgantown. You mentioned a while ago that
how important your team is. Can you elaborate and tell
us about your team?
Speaker 2 (26:20):
Yes, So we have a few different departments. We have
the development department, which is key clearly right, if you
don't have money, then you're not going to have a mission.
We have operations that take care of the mission every day,
the programs day to day, and then of course have
the financial piece because again, as I mentioned, you need
to run it as a business or you're not going
(26:42):
to be here tomorrow. So we are very prudent in
our processes and making sure you know accounts, payable and
receivable and all of those things. They are all tremendous individuals.
I am so grateful for the team that I work with.
We never miss a beat. They are incredible. The compassion
(27:04):
that I see on a day to day basis most
importantly for the families that we support, but also for
one another. Everyone cares about their peers and who they're
working with, even if you're not in the same department.
There's such a I can't even think of the right
word to justify what I see every day. And it's
(27:27):
a true pleasure. I can't tell you how many times
I am told by the team, I love my job.
I love coming to work. Not everyone can say.
Speaker 1 (27:38):
That because they're making a difference.
Speaker 2 (27:40):
They are every single day. They are making a difference.
Sometimes it's small and sometimes it's massive, depending on the situation.
And I remember when I first started. I would go
home and tell my husband this amazing thing happened, and
I said, you never hear about this on the news,
and he's like okay. And I would come home the
(28:00):
next day and you can't believe this happened and he's like, okay,
I said, no, that place is magic. It is magical.
Something happens positively every single day. How many people can
say that in their work environment, that is fantastic. It
is awesome.
Speaker 1 (28:18):
How important are the stores, the restaurants to your mission.
Speaker 2 (28:22):
They are very important because they bring awareness and how
they do that is we have a round up program
with the local McDonald's restaurants, and so when you go
through the drive through, they'll ask you if you want
to round up, and yes, you do, all right.
Speaker 1 (28:39):
Very quickly, you have a couple of fundraisers coming up.
Let's mention those.
Speaker 2 (28:43):
Yep, the Big Mac Open. We're excited. It's sold out,
but you can still participate.
Speaker 1 (28:48):
That's what they're talking. Yeah, and then the high Mark event.
Speaker 2 (28:53):
Yes, that's June fourteenth. That way you can participate, whether
virtually or actually walking again, another fundraiser. It's all online,
so it's easy to find and easy to participate in.
Speaker 1 (29:04):
And please participate in the fundraising because Eleanor is going
to be spreading, you know, just to start in Morgantown, now, Eerie,
are you going to continue to expand?
Speaker 2 (29:15):
I don't know, maybe take a moment, how about that?
Now it's all good for the families.
Speaker 1 (29:21):
It's an absolute pleasure. I don't know how you you
you keep getting younger every time you come. You look fantastic.
So thank you so much, and good luck with your
your fundraiser is good with good luck with your organization.
It's always a pleasure. Thank you all.
Speaker 2 (29:34):
Thank you so much.
Speaker 1 (29:35):
As always, If you have any comments, concerns, or an
idea for a future program, please email us from this
radio station's website. Johnny Heartwell, thank you so much for listening.
Speaker 3 (29:49):
Hey, life doesn't stop when cancer starts. Some don't make
it to treatment simply because they don't have a ride.
You can change that. Volunteer to drive with the American
Cancer Society Road to Recovery program. Visit cancer dot org
slash drive to learn more.
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