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Just ask Donna Comer if you want to know about the circle of love created by Ronald McDonald Houses. Donna realized the extent of this network when her son Robert was on a weekend ski trip with his church youth group in West Virginia. As Robert and the group traveled through the night, they came upon a patch of black ice that took the van out of control. Robert was thrown from the vehicle and received severe internal injuries.

In critical condition, Robert was rushed to a nearby hospital and then taken to Brenner Children's Hospital. During the ten hours before his arrival in Winston-Salem, it was very questionable whether Robert would live. "But God just picked him up and held him," said mother Donna.

When word reached home about Robert's accident, the Columbus Ronald McDonald House called inquiring about a room for Donna and her family. And throughout his two-month treatment, a prayer and support circle formed between the communities of Columbus, Georgia and Winston-Salem, North Carolina and the Ronald McDonald Houses within them.

As a fundraiser for the beginning of the Columbus Ronald McDonald House, Donna became familiar with the circle of families, friends, and volunteers created within the House, and as she had given to one House, she was receiving from another. Donna and her husband Frank stayed at our House while Robert was healing from his injuries. The days were very difficult as Robert's inability to eat continued for a long while due to the severity of his injuries. It helped everyone for his sisters and grandparents to join them on the weekends.

“Having the house was such a relief," said Donna. "Every time I left the hospital I would panic, but once got to the house there was comfort." Donna recalled the day Robert finally left the hospital and came by the House on his way home. He was 15 pounds lighter, and had a tube in his nose and stomach. "None of that mattered, there is such a fellowship with the people at the House, such similarities," said Donna. "Tears didn't matter in conversations either because your feelings and everyone else's feelings are understood."

Robert and his family have returned to our Ronald McDonald House when he needed check-ups at the hospital. He is healthier on each visit, eating double portions of meals, and bouncing around like an average fifteen-year-old. Recalling the experience of her family Donna states, "We now have such a connection with the Ronald McDonald House circle." When she helped begin the Columbus House she hoped and believed that the circle of Houses brought comfort to families. Now she says, "I know it's a place where families, like ours, can find comfort."

This story appeared in the December 2002 issue of Love Notes, our House newsletter. To read more stories about our families click here for back issues of our newsletter.