rmhspokanetour

Classroom Visit By Linnea and Mrs. Benson

One of the first grade teachers, Mrs. Benson, stayed at the Spokane Ronald McDonald House this winter when her daughter, Linnea, was at the hospital in Spokane which is about 70 miles from Pullman. Mrs. Benson came to our classroom this spring to tell us about her experiences there and she brought Linnea with her.

Mrs. Benson answered our questions about what it is like for families to be at the Ronald McDonald House. Here are our questions and her answers.

1. Why were you there?
When Linnea was born early, she needed to go to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at the hospital in Spokane. She was there for 15 days. While Linnea was in the hospital, we stayed at the Ronald McDonald House.

2. What was it like when Linnea was in the hospital?

It was scary at first because she had to be taken right away after she was born from the Pullman Hospital by ambulance, then airplane, then helicopter to the Spokane Hospital. And, it was sad because I didn't get to hold her right away like mothers want to do. I couldn't hold her until she was 8 days old. And it was tiring because I had to stand by her hospital bed for long hours. If I sat beside her bed I wouldn't have been able to see her.

3. Did the Ronald McDonald House feel like home to you?
Yes. It was nice because there were places to sit and read. And I could take a nap on my bed when I wasn't at the hospital with Linnea.

4. What was your favorite part of the Ronald McDonald House?

It was such a comfortable place and I got to be close to Linnea!

5. What was it like at the Ronald McDonald House?

It was close to the hospital so it was easy to get there to be with Linnea. I didn't have to drive back and forth everyday from Pullman. They had a shuttle van that could take me to the hospital.

The Ronald McDonald House is a brand new building and you had your own bedroom. You got to meet new people and families. There was a 5 year old girl staying there with her family. She was really nice. She didn't need to stay in the hospital but she needed to be there everyday to see her doctors.

The Ronald McDonald House had toys and children's videos and a playroom. They had some children's books but not very many. I was trying to find books to read to Linnea but they didn't have very many. They had Blueberries for Sal by Robert McCloskey. Getting more books for the Ronald McDonald House would be a good project!

The Ronald McDonald House had 3 big kitchens where we could fix our own food. There were cupboards of things you need to cook and an extra refrigerator. Sometimes, people cooked meals for us. That was great and their food was delicious. It was really nice that they did that because sometimes you were too tired to cook after being at the hospital all day. There was a helper chart in the kitchen so that families could take turns helping in the kitchen.

We have written and illustrated some children's books that we will give to the Spokane Ronald McDonald House for families to read. You can see those books on our pages about writing.
Thank you, Mrs. Benson and Linnea, for coming to our classroom. We learned a lot about how the Ronald McDonald Houses like the one in Spokane can help families have a home away from home when their children need hospital care! We learned how much you care for and love Linnea! We think she is a very wonderful baby and you are a special Mom!!!

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