The Ciacciarelli Family Dear Ronald McDonald House, We tried the best we could to express our thoughts on our experience at the Ronald McDonald House before we returned home after the death of our precious son Max, but we found that it just was not possible to do, so we wanted to write this letter to you now that we have returned home. As we told many of the staff before, never in our lives did we imagine ourselves living at a Ronald McDonald House. Having a terminally ill child is frightening beyond words, and having to move our family for his treatment was frightening as well. But as it turned out, the Ronald McDonald House was a shining light in all of our darkness. Among the many benefits of the House, we are most grateful for two things: allowing us to spend more time with our children, especially our son Max, and for giving our daughter Grace a home. From the moment any new baby is born the older sibling automatically receives less attention. This is especially true if the new baby is born ill. Max was 9 weeks premature and required a lot of care in his early days. Things became much more complicated when he was diagnosed with Hurler Syndrome and needed a bone marrow transplant. Grace had always been a good big sister to Max and was his biggest cheerleader. However, we were worried that moving her to Minneapolis and away from everything and everyone she loved might be asking too much of her. But thanks to the RMH and the wonderful volunteers there, Grace’s life didn’t have to revolve around her brother. She made good friends, she learned new things and she had so much fun. When we first arrived in Minnesota, Grace continually mentioned our home in Illinois, asked when we could go home and wondered why her brother was always sick. At the end of our stay, she cried and cried because she did not want to leave the Ronald McDonald House. We think that speaks volumes. And then there is Max, our precious son whose life on this earth was so painfully short. The volunteers who cooked dinner at the Ronald McDonald House every night gave us more time with him. WHAT A GIFT! WHAT A GIFT! We were thinking about it the other night. Those meals saved us an hour every day, not to mention the time at the store to get the groceries to make them. Max died at the age of 16 1/2 months. We were at the Ronald McDonald House for over 5 of those months. Add it all up and you learn that they gave us over 6 days with our baby boy. I cannot even begin to express what this means to us. We have often remarked that when volunteers come in to help they know they are doing a good deed. But they probably don’t realize that the goodness of their actions far exceeds what they imagine. Music time, book club, cooking lessons, parties, crafts and bingo are far more than they appear to be. Meals are just not food. We are grateful beyond words for the Ronald McDonald House, its staff and volunteers. May you all know how much you have given us and continue to give others in need. Sincerely, Margaret, Mike and Grace Ciacciarelli The Ronald McDonald House of the Twin Cities was home for the Ciacciarelli family as they fought to save Max. Max Ciacciarelli died in his parents arms on November 26, 2003. The Ciacciarelli’s sent this letter to the Ronald McDonald House shortly after they returned to their home in Illinois.