Your generosity helps moms get through the toughest time of their lives
RONALD MCDONALD HOUSE (RMH), just steps away from Yale New Haven Children’s Hospital, is a home away from home for the families of pediatric patients receiving medical treatment. Judy Pasqualoni, a marketing manager for the specialty centers at Yale New Haven Children’s Hospital, made it her mission to help the moms of these kids get through the toughest time of their lives. Here’s her story, in her own words.
Just before Valentine’s Day 2013, I was volunteering wit
h my staff at the Ronald McDonald House. I saw how terribly sad and lonely most of the mothers there were. And I wondered what I could do to make this difficult time just a little easier.
I decided to make little “spa baskets” to give as Valentine’s Day gifts—one for each of the 12 moms staying there. They included things like pretty soaps, hand cream, shampoo, and a notebook and pen. I wanted to make the mothers feel that they weren’t alone, that someone was thinking about them.
The house manager at RMH told me the mothers were absolutely overwhelmed when they received them! So I knew I had to make more. My co-workers chipped in generously to help purchase the spa items. And whatever I couldn’t get from others, I put in myself.
That was three and a half years ago, and over 200 baskets have been delivered since! Now every new mom who comes to RMH finds a gift basket waiting for her on her bed.