The Ronald McDonald House of San Francisco Lodging Program provides temporary housing, volunteer-prepared meals and many other supportive services for families whose critically ill child is receiving specialized treatment in a San Francisco hospital. The Ronald McDonald House creates a home-like environment where family members find comfort from other families facing their children’s critical health issues and receive support from caring volunteers and staff. 

The high cost of hotel rooms in San Francisco is unaffordable for the families we serve.  If it were not for the Ronald McDonald House parents and family members would resort to sleeping on a hospital chair or in their cars.

The House’s aim is to keep families healthy, strong and pulling together at the most difficult time in their lives.  Siblings, a grandparent or other supportive relatives may stay at the House with the parents.  Sometimes a grandparent or other adult relative stays for part of the week, enabling a parent to travel back to work.

Families are prioritized on the basis of financial need, distance from their home, and length of stay (the longer the projected stay, the higher the priority).  The House staff is committed to keeping the house at full capacity so as not to let a room go un-used for a single night. Though families are asked for a modest contribution toward their stay, no family is ever turned away because of inability to pay. 

For information on eligibility requirements, how to proceed if your family wishes to stay and other key information read Staying at the House.

UCSF Child’s Bedside Program

In January of 2008, volunteers and staff successfully piloted the Child Bedside Program at the UCSF Children’s Hospital (Parnassus Campus) in which volunteers visit young patients and their families in-hospital, bringing beverages, supplies, a listening ear and a caring heart. Through this program, the Ronald McDonald House of San Francisco seeks to serve families who are camping out at their child’s bedside out of the enormous need to remain close to their child. 
Child’s Bedside Program volunteers are screened and receive specialized training to visit young patients and their families in patient’s rooms. Volunteers have the privilege of visiting eleven major units of the UCSF hospital.  Both the children and families value our volunteers’ conversation and beverages. This new program has been so well received by families and the UCSF staff that we are adding training programs and volunteer shifts. For more information on the Child’s Bedside Program click on: Sponsoring the Child’s Bedside Program or Volunteering for the Child’s Bedside Program.