In this episode of West Michigan Weekend, host Phil Tower speaks with Salina Bishop, President and CEO of Ronald McDonald House Charities West Michigan (RMHCWM), who discusses her strategic vision for the organization, emphasizing its critical role in the region's evolving healthcare sector.
In our conversation, Salina discusses three key areas: securing a "seat at the table" in local healthcare, reshaping the narrative that RMHCWM is "more than just a place to stay," and providing "radical hospitality" to remove family barriers.
Bishop also highlights the impact of the recent $2.5 million expansion, which increased capacity to 25 family suites, allowing the 35-year-old nonprofit to better meet the increasing demand for specialized pediatric care in Grand Rapids.
Learn More: Ronald McDonald House Charities West Michigan
In our conversation, Salina discusses three key areas: securing a "seat at the table" in local healthcare, reshaping the narrative that RMHCWM is "more than just a place to stay," and providing "radical hospitality" to remove family barriers.
Bishop also highlights the impact of the recent $2.5 million expansion, which increased capacity to 25 family suites, allowing the 35-year-old nonprofit to better meet the increasing demand for specialized pediatric care in Grand Rapids.
Learn More: Ronald McDonald House Charities West Michigan
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:02):
This is iHeartRadio's West Michigan Weekend. West Michigan Weekend is
a weekly program designed to inform and enlighten on a
wide range of public policy issues, as well as news
and current events. Now here's your host, Phil Tower.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
In this segment, I'm really pleased to catch up with
the new president and CEO of Ronald McDonald House Charities
of West Michigan. She is Selena Bishop. She was in
a chief Development officer role with the Ronald McDonald House
Charities of West Michigan before becoming president earlier this year
in January of twenty twenty five, and a lot of
(00:38):
exciting things happening at the Ronald McDonald House Charities West Michigan,
including a big renovation last year. Selena, we have, first
of all, welcome to the program.
Speaker 3 (00:48):
Thank you so much. Thanks for having me.
Speaker 2 (00:50):
I just realized we've got a lot to pack into
our conversation here, so i'd better get right to it
so we can be focused. I'm really excited that you
are in this role and taking some time to talk
with our iHeartRadio audience about Ronald McDonald House charity here
in West Michigan. I learned something doing some research for
our conversation. I didn't realize Ronald McDonald House in West
(01:14):
Michigan has been open for thirty five years here in
Grand Rapids. That's amazing. And did I see you guys
have served since the beginning in nineteen ninety in West Michigan.
You served like ten thousand families. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (01:30):
Yeah, so we served thousands of people.
Speaker 2 (01:33):
Yeah, absolutely, so I want to I'm giving you a
standing ovation as I'm talking with you on the radio here.
This is fantastic. I mean, that's quite a legacy. Selena.
First of all, a little bit of personal background on you. You
were a development officer for the Ronald McDonald House charities
here in West Michigan. You're on the northeast side of
(01:54):
town and just quietly doing your thing for decades. You said,
the board tapped you to become the current president and CEO.
Your former president and CEO was retiring. What's this process
been like for you? Did you want this role? I mean,
obviously this is a great opportunity. How did it all happen?
(02:15):
Share that with us in our listening audience.
Speaker 3 (02:18):
Yeah, first of all, thanks for having me, and what
a wonderful question. Yeah, so, my predecessor knew that she
was going to be retiring and was really just kind
of grooming me, so to speak, to take on this role.
And so when the board tapped me, I was just
so pleased and so excited to move into this role.
(02:41):
I've worked in the nonprofit set excuse me, nonprofit sector
for a number of years, and I've always been drawn
to organizations like this that have such heart and such purpose,
and I always say, I just feel extremely blessed to
be in this role. It's been amazing and.
Speaker 2 (02:59):
It amazing time. Selena. You really have been focusing on
three key areas in your leadership as president CEO of
Ronald McDonald House Charities of West Michigan. Having a seat
at the healthcare table will unpack that in just a moment,
changing the narratives so folks understand at the professional level
(03:19):
and just at the community level, you're a lot more
than just a place to stay. I mean, you're a
safety net for these families and providing love. This is
my favorite one of your three key areas, radical hospitality.
Making sure you're providing radical hospitality. I like that. I
think I want to put that in my living room
in my house. I love that phrase. It's so engaging.
(03:43):
But let's start with the time here in West Michigan.
And I think you've alluded to this in the fact
that we have so much going on as a healthcare destination.
Grand Rapids is really on the map Selena as a
place for people to come to get excellent, high quality
treatment for kids. We've got, of course, Helen de Voz
Children's Hospital. We've got a brand new rehab hospital with
(04:07):
Mary FREEBD Rehabilitation Hospital, the Joon andes Sekia Rehab a
hospital that will be opening in twenty twenty six. Pine
Rest has got a hospital. So a lot of parents
converging upon Grand Rapids to get high level care for
their kids. But that means they might need a place
to stay, right, Yeah.
Speaker 3 (04:26):
Absolutely so. So many families are traveling all over from
the state of like all over the state two Grand
Rapids to seek health care for their child. So they're
traveling outside of the state within the state. And it
really is incredible that all of us here in West
Michigan we have access to that healthcare, so we don't
necessarily think about, well, where would we stay if our
(04:48):
child needed, you know, some medical care. But for other
families that are traveling here for that state of the
art healthcare. They need a place to stay, and that's
where we come in. That's where we focus, you know,
are on our hospitality effort.
Speaker 2 (05:05):
Yeah, and that's a great point. We take for granted
what we have in our own backyard, but for people,
you know, in a small town in the up or
in a small community, and you know, northwestern Iowa, Grand
Rapids is certainly an important place. We've got really high
level medical care, not only for adults but for children.
(05:27):
Talking about having a seat at the healthcare table for
the Ronald McDonald House charity here in.
Speaker 3 (05:32):
West Michigan, Yeah, you know, I think that was such
an important point. You know, in my vision is just
making sure that we have that proverbial seat at the table.
And that's what I stepped into in this role, and
what it was was making sure that we were represented
in conversations about pediatric care in West Michigan as a whole.
(05:54):
But now, you know, a little over eleven months into
this role, I've realized you have those reallyships with our
hospital partner and with our community organizations, and so we
continue to build on that and strengthen those relationships, and
it's really no longer about being invited into that space
(06:15):
or to that table, but really it's about setting that
table for families to meet us.
Speaker 2 (06:21):
Yeah, that's an important thing in reminding those families constantly.
You just the Ronald McDonald House Charities of West Michigan
just underwent a major renovation last year. You added eight
new family suites. These are really impressive, twenty five bedrooms
now overall with private baths, two suites equipped for isolation,
(06:45):
which you don't think about that that's sometimes the thing
for families and their kids. And three of those are
handicap accessible. Yet you are often at capacity? Am I
understanding that correct?
Speaker 3 (06:58):
You are understanding that directly, And I think what I
want us to always be very careful with is to
never wear that as a badge of honor, that we
are always at capacity. It means that there's room for
us to be able to do more and to expand.
But that's where our community comes in to ensure that
families do have a place to stay. So although we
can't necessarily expand next week a bigger house, we can
(07:22):
focus on what's coming next in different ways of expansion.
From a family room at the new Pinrath hospital where
we'll be able to be directly in the hospital, meeting
families where there are when they are really in the
hardest moments of their life. And so, you know, expansion
is always something that we are thinking about, but that
(07:43):
can mean so many different things, from you know, expanding
the support of our families here in the house to
those efforts like a family room at the hospital.
Speaker 2 (07:53):
Yeah, So as we look forward to twenty twenty six,
you've got a captive radio audience. What are some of
the key things you want them to be aware of.
We're coming into the holiday season, You've got you've got
a very attentive ear. What do you want them to know?
How can they help you in you know, achieving these
(08:13):
important goals.
Speaker 3 (08:15):
Yeah, I think as we're coming into the holiday seasons,
we all might be getting ready to celebrate those holidays.
And what I want everybody to understand is that when
the families are here, they're living here, but they also
have a life back home, and so things are kind of,
you know, maybe a little bit more chaotic. And what
I'd love for, you know, the listening audience to understand is,
(08:39):
you know, support the house of course cash donations, but
also you know, in time like food donations, host collection drives,
build awareness. You know, I always love to say West
Michigan is known for its niceness. We hear the West
Michigan nice It's also about our hospitality and this is
a great way to give back and to be hospitable
(09:00):
to those families traveling here to our wonderful, beautiful West
Michigan community. And people can just visit, you know, our
website and see all of the different ways they can
become involved. But it truly is just being a part
of this mission and just making sure that we are
supporting families when they need it most.
Speaker 2 (09:21):
And private donations are always helpful.
Speaker 3 (09:23):
Absolutely, yes, I mean it's what moves our mission forward.
It's what ensures that we are meeting the needs of
families every single day, every single time. And so you know,
that's what keeps the house free for families and for
us to be able to provide you know, the meals,
the food, the transportation, all of the things that make
(09:46):
this a hospitality house really trying to relieve any of
those burdens for the families. And so, you know, any
way people can give back in that form really makes
a huge difference. You see, it in the families that
are here every day.
Speaker 2 (10:03):
Yeah, that's Selena Bishop. She is President and CEO of
Ronald McDonald House Charities here in West Michigan with us
on iHeartRadio's West Michigan Weekend. I've got a couple of
minutes left. If there's a family listening right now and
they know that they're a member of their family, maybe
one of their adult children are going to be bringing
(10:24):
a child to grand rapids or treatment sometime in the future.
Is this something that is automatically mentioned by the hospital.
How do families connect with you? And again, I've got
a couple of minutes left for you to share that
and just for some helpful information on how families can
make sure they're in touch with either your opportunity through
(10:45):
Ronald McDonald Hou's Charities of West Michigan, or at least
ask those questions of the healthcare system they're going to
be interfacing with.
Speaker 3 (10:51):
Yeah, I mean, I think it's just again building that awareness.
And you know, people don't know that they will need
the house until they're in a crisis situation. And so
what I would encourage any family who might see in
the future that their child needs care here in West Michigan.
Visit our website, talk to your social workers, you know,
ask those questions and feel free to reach out to us.
(11:15):
They can call it any time and we will provide
them with whatever information that they need. But really just
staying here. Just look us up online, visit our website
and all that information is there. Again, it's about building
awareness and so people just know to reach out to us.
It's one of the best parts of my role is
(11:36):
being able to speak on the awareness and the ability
to connect the dots so people know we're here.
Speaker 2 (11:42):
Yeah, and you can do that at our MHCWM dot
org that our MHCWM dot org stands for Ronald McDonald
House Charities of West Michigan, or you could say just
google that that works as well too. You could make
a donation to the website it is that time of
year and pay it forward for a family that will
(12:04):
be staying at the Ronald McDonald House charity here in
West Michigan. Really an important thing. And congratulations first of
all on your exciting new role within the Ronald McDonald
House here in West Michigan. And I'm so glad we've
had the opportunity to catch up with you. Let's let's
make sure to do this again down the line.
Speaker 3 (12:25):
Okay, Selena, absolutely, thank you so much for having me.
Speaker 2 (12:28):
She is Selena Bishop, the President and CEO of Ronald
McDonald House Charities here in West Michigan. Again. The website
is RMHCWM dot org.
Speaker 1 (12:39):
You've been listening to iHeartRadio's West Michigan Weekend. West Michigan
Weekend is a production of Wood Radio and iHeartRadio.
This is iHeartRadio's West Michigan Weekend. West Michigan Weekend is
a weekly program designed to inform and enlighten on a
wide range of public policy issues, as well as news
and current events. Now here's your host, Phil Tower.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
In this segment, I'm really pleased to catch up with
the new president and CEO of Ronald McDonald House Charities
of West Michigan. She is Selena Bishop. She was in
a chief Development officer role with the Ronald McDonald House
Charities of West Michigan before becoming president earlier this year
in January of twenty twenty five, and a lot of
(00:38):
exciting things happening at the Ronald McDonald House Charities West Michigan,
including a big renovation last year. Selena, we have, first
of all, welcome to the program.
Speaker 3 (00:48):
Thank you so much. Thanks for having me.
Speaker 2 (00:50):
I just realized we've got a lot to pack into
our conversation here, so i'd better get right to it
so we can be focused. I'm really excited that you
are in this role and taking some time to talk
with our iHeartRadio audience about Ronald McDonald House charity here
in West Michigan. I learned something doing some research for
our conversation. I didn't realize Ronald McDonald House in West
(01:14):
Michigan has been open for thirty five years here in
Grand Rapids. That's amazing. And did I see you guys
have served since the beginning in nineteen ninety in West Michigan.
You served like ten thousand families. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (01:30):
Yeah, so we served thousands of people.
Speaker 2 (01:33):
Yeah, absolutely, so I want to I'm giving you a
standing ovation as I'm talking with you on the radio here.
This is fantastic. I mean, that's quite a legacy. Selena.
First of all, a little bit of personal background on you. You
were a development officer for the Ronald McDonald House charities
here in West Michigan. You're on the northeast side of
(01:54):
town and just quietly doing your thing for decades. You said,
the board tapped you to become the current president and CEO.
Your former president and CEO was retiring. What's this process
been like for you? Did you want this role? I mean,
obviously this is a great opportunity. How did it all happen?
(02:15):
Share that with us in our listening audience.
Speaker 3 (02:18):
Yeah, first of all, thanks for having me, and what
a wonderful question. Yeah, so, my predecessor knew that she
was going to be retiring and was really just kind
of grooming me, so to speak, to take on this role.
And so when the board tapped me, I was just
so pleased and so excited to move into this role.
(02:41):
I've worked in the nonprofit set excuse me, nonprofit sector
for a number of years, and I've always been drawn
to organizations like this that have such heart and such purpose,
and I always say, I just feel extremely blessed to
be in this role. It's been amazing and.
Speaker 2 (02:59):
It amazing time. Selena. You really have been focusing on
three key areas in your leadership as president CEO of
Ronald McDonald House Charities of West Michigan. Having a seat
at the healthcare table will unpack that in just a moment,
changing the narratives so folks understand at the professional level
(03:19):
and just at the community level, you're a lot more
than just a place to stay. I mean, you're a
safety net for these families and providing love. This is
my favorite one of your three key areas, radical hospitality.
Making sure you're providing radical hospitality. I like that. I
think I want to put that in my living room
in my house. I love that phrase. It's so engaging.
(03:43):
But let's start with the time here in West Michigan.
And I think you've alluded to this in the fact
that we have so much going on as a healthcare destination.
Grand Rapids is really on the map Selena as a
place for people to come to get excellent, high quality
treatment for kids. We've got, of course, Helen de Voz
Children's Hospital. We've got a brand new rehab hospital with
(04:07):
Mary FREEBD Rehabilitation Hospital, the Joon andes Sekia Rehab a
hospital that will be opening in twenty twenty six. Pine
Rest has got a hospital. So a lot of parents
converging upon Grand Rapids to get high level care for
their kids. But that means they might need a place
to stay, right, Yeah.
Speaker 3 (04:26):
Absolutely so. So many families are traveling all over from
the state of like all over the state two Grand
Rapids to seek health care for their child. So they're
traveling outside of the state within the state. And it
really is incredible that all of us here in West
Michigan we have access to that healthcare, so we don't
necessarily think about, well, where would we stay if our
(04:48):
child needed, you know, some medical care. But for other
families that are traveling here for that state of the
art healthcare. They need a place to stay, and that's
where we come in. That's where we focus, you know,
are on our hospitality effort.
Speaker 2 (05:05):
Yeah, and that's a great point. We take for granted
what we have in our own backyard, but for people,
you know, in a small town in the up or
in a small community, and you know, northwestern Iowa, Grand
Rapids is certainly an important place. We've got really high
level medical care, not only for adults but for children.
(05:27):
Talking about having a seat at the healthcare table for
the Ronald McDonald House charity here in.
Speaker 3 (05:32):
West Michigan, Yeah, you know, I think that was such
an important point. You know, in my vision is just
making sure that we have that proverbial seat at the table.
And that's what I stepped into in this role, and
what it was was making sure that we were represented
in conversations about pediatric care in West Michigan as a whole.
(05:54):
But now, you know, a little over eleven months into
this role, I've realized you have those reallyships with our
hospital partner and with our community organizations, and so we
continue to build on that and strengthen those relationships, and
it's really no longer about being invited into that space
(06:15):
or to that table, but really it's about setting that
table for families to meet us.
Speaker 2 (06:21):
Yeah, that's an important thing in reminding those families constantly.
You just the Ronald McDonald House Charities of West Michigan
just underwent a major renovation last year. You added eight
new family suites. These are really impressive, twenty five bedrooms
now overall with private baths, two suites equipped for isolation,
(06:45):
which you don't think about that that's sometimes the thing
for families and their kids. And three of those are
handicap accessible. Yet you are often at capacity? Am I
understanding that correct?
Speaker 3 (06:58):
You are understanding that directly, And I think what I
want us to always be very careful with is to
never wear that as a badge of honor, that we
are always at capacity. It means that there's room for
us to be able to do more and to expand.
But that's where our community comes in to ensure that
families do have a place to stay. So although we
can't necessarily expand next week a bigger house, we can
(07:22):
focus on what's coming next in different ways of expansion.
From a family room at the new Pinrath hospital where
we'll be able to be directly in the hospital, meeting
families where there are when they are really in the
hardest moments of their life. And so, you know, expansion
is always something that we are thinking about, but that
(07:43):
can mean so many different things, from you know, expanding
the support of our families here in the house to
those efforts like a family room at the hospital.
Speaker 2 (07:53):
Yeah, So as we look forward to twenty twenty six,
you've got a captive radio audience. What are some of
the key things you want them to be aware of.
We're coming into the holiday season, You've got you've got
a very attentive ear. What do you want them to know?
How can they help you in you know, achieving these
(08:13):
important goals.
Speaker 3 (08:15):
Yeah, I think as we're coming into the holiday seasons,
we all might be getting ready to celebrate those holidays.
And what I want everybody to understand is that when
the families are here, they're living here, but they also
have a life back home, and so things are kind of,
you know, maybe a little bit more chaotic. And what
I'd love for, you know, the listening audience to understand is,
(08:39):
you know, support the house of course cash donations, but
also you know, in time like food donations, host collection drives,
build awareness. You know, I always love to say West
Michigan is known for its niceness. We hear the West
Michigan nice It's also about our hospitality and this is
a great way to give back and to be hospitable
(09:00):
to those families traveling here to our wonderful, beautiful West
Michigan community. And people can just visit, you know, our
website and see all of the different ways they can
become involved. But it truly is just being a part
of this mission and just making sure that we are
supporting families when they need it most.
Speaker 2 (09:21):
And private donations are always helpful.
Speaker 3 (09:23):
Absolutely, yes, I mean it's what moves our mission forward.
It's what ensures that we are meeting the needs of
families every single day, every single time. And so you know,
that's what keeps the house free for families and for
us to be able to provide you know, the meals,
the food, the transportation, all of the things that make
(09:46):
this a hospitality house really trying to relieve any of
those burdens for the families. And so, you know, any
way people can give back in that form really makes
a huge difference. You see, it in the families that
are here every day.
Speaker 2 (10:03):
Yeah, that's Selena Bishop. She is President and CEO of
Ronald McDonald House Charities here in West Michigan with us
on iHeartRadio's West Michigan Weekend. I've got a couple of
minutes left. If there's a family listening right now and
they know that they're a member of their family, maybe
one of their adult children are going to be bringing
(10:24):
a child to grand rapids or treatment sometime in the future.
Is this something that is automatically mentioned by the hospital.
How do families connect with you? And again, I've got
a couple of minutes left for you to share that
and just for some helpful information on how families can
make sure they're in touch with either your opportunity through
(10:45):
Ronald McDonald Hou's Charities of West Michigan, or at least
ask those questions of the healthcare system they're going to
be interfacing with.
Speaker 3 (10:51):
Yeah, I mean, I think it's just again building that awareness.
And you know, people don't know that they will need
the house until they're in a crisis situation. And so
what I would encourage any family who might see in
the future that their child needs care here in West Michigan.
Visit our website, talk to your social workers, you know,
ask those questions and feel free to reach out to us.
(11:15):
They can call it any time and we will provide
them with whatever information that they need. But really just
staying here. Just look us up online, visit our website
and all that information is there. Again, it's about building
awareness and so people just know to reach out to us.
It's one of the best parts of my role is
(11:36):
being able to speak on the awareness and the ability
to connect the dots so people know we're here.
Speaker 2 (11:42):
Yeah, and you can do that at our MHCWM dot
org that our MHCWM dot org stands for Ronald McDonald
House Charities of West Michigan, or you could say just
google that that works as well too. You could make
a donation to the website it is that time of
year and pay it forward for a family that will
(12:04):
be staying at the Ronald McDonald House charity here in
West Michigan. Really an important thing. And congratulations first of
all on your exciting new role within the Ronald McDonald
House here in West Michigan. And I'm so glad we've
had the opportunity to catch up with you. Let's let's
make sure to do this again down the line.
Speaker 3 (12:25):
Okay, Selena, absolutely, thank you so much for having me.
Speaker 2 (12:28):
She is Selena Bishop, the President and CEO of Ronald
McDonald House Charities here in West Michigan. Again. The website
is RMHCWM dot org.
Speaker 1 (12:39):
You've been listening to iHeartRadio's West Michigan Weekend. West Michigan
Weekend is a production of Wood Radio and iHeartRadio.
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
Are You A Charlotte?
In 1997, actress Kristin Davis’ life was forever changed when she took on the role of Charlotte York in Sex and the City. As we watched Carrie, Samantha, Miranda and Charlotte navigate relationships in NYC, the show helped push once unacceptable conversation topics out of the shadows and altered the narrative around women and sex. We all saw ourselves in them as they searched for fulfillment in life, sex and friendships. Now, Kristin Davis wants to connect with you, the fans, and share untold stories and all the behind the scenes. Together, with Kristin and special guests, what will begin with Sex and the City will evolve into talks about themes that are still so relevant today. "Are you a Charlotte?" is much more than just rewatching this beloved show, it brings the past and the present together as we talk with heart, humor and of course some optimism.