In 1982, the infant daughter of Junior League of Louisville member Jef Rounsavall was diagnosed with cancer.  During Christine’s long and successful hospital treatments, Jef and her husband Hunt, observed that many parents of critically ill children were far from home and had no where to relax.  The Roundsavalls went to work to establish a Ronald McDonald House in Louisville.

Jef came to the JLL and asked for help.  Many JLL members contributed countless hours of planning, training and hard work to the projects.  The first year, 16 JLL Members sat on the Ronald McDonald House Board of Directors, 16 JLL Members chose the project as their placement and another 23 volunteered their time outside their League service.  The JLL also made a donation of $52,000 to renovate and furnish the dining room.  Ground was broken on September 12, 1983 and the building at 550 South First Street was completely renovated through the efforts of volunteers, community partners and generous donations from the McDonalds restaurants.

The 17,000 sf facility had 20 private bedrooms, five fully stocked kitchens, a dining room, 2 lounge areas, laundry room and a children’s play area.  The house is open 24 hours a day 7 days a week and at the time only cost $10 per night with a sliding fee scale.

The JLL continued its relationship with the home sending volunteers through Done In A Day events through the years!

To learn more about Ronald McDonald House Charities of Kentuckiana click here.

To support the RMHC you can purchase items from their Amazon Wish List.