The charity that provides a free ‘home from home’ place to stay for families while their child is in hospital gets a Christmas facelift.
Generosity of spirit is one of the Opendoorz core values. Like a stick of rock, it runs through everything we do – from how we treat each other to the attitude with which we approach each and every opportunity that presents itself to us.
It also expresses the personality of all the Opendoorz groups. The Opendoorz team and all the members at each of the seven groups are proactive in sharing their experiences and expertise to create a learning environment where knowledge is shared and new ideas and initiatives formed. Supporting each other through questioning, challenging and giving honest and constructive feedback helps everyone to improve, innovate and grow.
The other element to ‘generosity of spirit’ is our firm belief that as a business we have a commitment to support and be a part of the local community. So, when the opportunity came along to meld these two – the individual personality of each group and supporting our local community – we, naturally, jumped at the chance!
Throughout 2021 Opendoorz has been supporting Ronald McDonald House Charities UK and the brilliant work they do providing free ‘home away from home’ accommodation to families whilst their child is in hospital. Having already raised over £12,000 over the course of the last year, we decided we could raise the bar for Christmas.
A Festive Challenge
On 29 November, volunteers from each Opendoorz group arrived at Ronald McDonald House Oxford armed with carloads of Christmas trees, lights, tinsel and baubles galore to take part in a decorating competition across the six communal kitchen/dining/sitting rooms which are shared by the 62 families staying the Charity’s accommodation over the Christmas period.
Each team had just two hours to turn their area from functional space into winter wonderland. With Opendoorz founders, Cathy and Sonia, acting as judges, the competition quickly started to heat up!
Members of each Opendoorz group spent time planning their theme, fund raising and sourcing decorations. Each group came up with a different idea, really showing their individuality and personalities!
After much deliberation, the Milton Park group were declared the winners with their stunning Gruffalo themed design. The North Oxford group were the worthy runners up with a colourful Ronald McDonald tree. However, all the groups were winners with the amazing effort they put in!
Opendoorz founder, Cathy Dunbabin said, “we’re delighted to support this great charity, and we’d like to thank everyone involved for all their hard work and donations. Our goal is simple: through our networking groups to bring businesses together to share expertise, knowledge and experiences ensuring they reap the rewards and their business flourishes. Alongside this, we like to give back to the communities where our members live and work”
Ronald McDonald House Charities UK Corporate Fundraiser Caroline Sinclair said, “After the past 18 months, we were glad to welcome representatives from the Opendoorz networking groups to decorate our House so beautifully. We are here to make sure mums, dads, siblings and relatives can be near their ill child and we make every effort to ensure that they have what they need to get through the challenges they face and be together as a family. At Ronald McDonald House we’re keen to provide more than just a bed for the night, and helping families to feel more at home is important to us, especially at such a crucial time of the year for families to be together”
Ronald McDonald House Charities UK has 12 Houses across the UK. All are situated in or near hospital grounds to enable seriously ill children to have their families close by when they are undergoing treatment. These facilities are a vital form of support for children and families, helping them to maintain a degree of normal life.
Raising money for good causes, being an integral part of the community and having fun is all part of Opendoorz. If you’d like to find out more about Opendoorz why not come along to one of our guest events? Find out more here: https://opendoorz.biz/contact/
