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We're dancing to make a difference for sick kids!
When a child is injured, or diagnosed with a serious illness, it affects the whole family. Lives can be turned upside down, and puts families under enormous pressure. For many families, it can feel like it’s impossible to hold it together.
That’s why we’re joining Ronald McDonald House to Dance for Sick Kids this year.
We’ll be dancing to make a difference every day for 7 days, to raise money that will help families stay in a home-away-from-home, access emotional and financial support, and more. From day one in the hospital and for as long as it takes, your help ensures that families don’t have to navigate the challenges of illness or injury alone.
Please support us by making a tax-deductible donation to our challenge. Your generosity will make sure that Ronald McDonald House can support even more families with a seriously ill or injured child when they need it most.
OUR IMPACT
So far, this year we have provided:
6
Nights for sick kids and their families
58
Hot meals from the family kitchen
55
School lessons for sick kids
Thanks to all the generous people who’ve donated to our challenge.
$173
Katerina Peschel
$117
John Nieman
$115
Jo Duncan
Go you good thing! Dance till you drop!
$65
Anonymous
$55
B Woods
$55
Kellie Markwell
Good Luck Cape Nat!
$55
Alison Wright
$55
Mrs O'brien
Let's Go, Cape Nat!
$34
Astrid Nader-louw
$34
Eileen Booth
$34
Lenka Bassham
Go Cape Nat!
$34
Justine Allen
$34
Stephanie Cook
$34
Trent Collins
Well done to all involved!
$30
Helen Ball
Well done, Cape Nat!
$24
Marie Eckert
$24
Lisa Lea
Good luck Ebony to you and the team on Wednesday.
$24
Kathy Leach
$24
G Kaptein
$24
Melanie Bromley
$24
Brad Wild
$20
Madden
$18
Anonymous
$12
Anonymous
Our Team Members
How Your Donation Helps
A global research team* worked with Ronald McDonald House to evaluate the impact of our House Program on families around the world. The following is a summary of those findings**.
Access to the best care
Our House Program makes it possible for families who travel long distances, to access the top children’s hospitals around the world.
Stronger mental health
Having a child in hospital can trigger clinical anxiety in parents. Our Houses provide families with the emotional, mental and practical support to better manage their stress so that they can be more actively involved in the care of their children.
Financial peace of mind
Ongoing medical bills, travel, and accommodation costs are a huge source of stress for many families. Our Houses offer accommodation at no cost, close to hospitals, to alleviate some of the burden.
Parents sleep better
Parents who sleep at one of our Houses have a better night’s rest than those that sleep at their child’s hospital bedside. This ensures they have the strength to support their child.
Children’s recovery
Having family and siblings close by, who are invested in a child’s care, can improve a hospitalised child’s recovery and treatment outcomes.
Positive hospital experience
Families who stay at a Ronald McDonald House find they have a more positive experience of hospital than those that stay elsewhere.
Families cope better
Having family together under one roof, including the support of experienced volunteers and other families, greatly improves a family’s ability to cope with having a child in hospital.
Safe, affordable alternative to hospital
Many high-risk pregnant women who are stable but need to be close to care, can now afford to stay close to care. This is also the case for parents who have a newborn in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU).
Siblings cope better
Play is how children interact and make sense of the world. That’s why play areas are such an important part of our offering. They allow siblings to connect and cope more with the stress of a difficult situation.
* The global team of researchers was drawn from leading universities, including the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), George Washington University, the University of Chicago, as well as from top medical centres in Hong Kong; Sydney, Australia; the United Kingdom; Buenos Aires, Argentina; Cincinnati, U.S.; and Toronto, Canada.
** Findings taken from Ronald McDonald House Impact Research – the name for a suite of studies on the impact of Ronald McDonald House around the world. The summaries provided here provide a snapshot of the findings from each of the key Ronald McDonald House Impact studies.
CONTACT THE DANCE FOR SICK KIDS TEAM
If you have any questions about Dance for Sick Kids or need a hand with anything, please reach out. We're here to help!
In the spirit of reconciliation, Dance for Sick Kids respectfully acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of the lands, skies and waterways where we work, live and dance. We honour their enduring connection to this land, its communities, and the surrounding waterways. We recognise and respect the diverse Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples within the families we support, as well as our employees, volunteers, and supporters. We extend our deepest respects to their Cultures and to Elders past and present. We affirm that the land we stand on has always been, and will always remain, Aboriginal land.
Dance for Sick Kids welcomes people of all abilities, identities, and backgrounds. We are committed to creating an inclusive, respectful, and safe space for everyone to participate and belong.
© Copyright 2025 | Terms and Conditions | Safeguarding Children and Young People Statement | Competition Terms and Conditions
CONTACT US 0449 007 302 danceforsickkids@rmhc.org.au
Ronald McDonald House Greater Western Sydney | 1 Labyrinth Way, Westmead NSW 2145 Australia | ABN: 30 540 051 012
Ronald McDonald House Victoria & Tasmania | 863 Brunswick Street North, Fitzroy North Vic 3068 | ABN: 88 762 184 608
I am part of Cape Naturaliste College team
Our family has personally experienced the amazing effects of the Ronald McDonald House only last year when we almost lost our youngest daughter aged 4 from a serious illness. She spent 17 days in PICU unit and a further 7.5 weeks in the PCH Respiratory Ward in which our family of 6 was blessed to stay within the Ronald McDonald House for her full admission. This was such a blessing keeping our family together as a tight unit in such a scary situation. They go above and beyond for the families. It was honestly the most humbling experience during the worst time of our lives. We are so very proud of both our daughter’s who attended Cape Naturaliste ( Laila Allen Year 9 ) & ( Leah Allen Year 7 ) in their upcoming involvement in this dance for your team and representing such an incredible organisation. Our school, yourself and all students and teachers involved in this charity should be so proud in the amount of magic no matter how big or small it all helps extremely. We know we are one of the blessed families to have such an incredible ending in our journey and being able to have our little girl back home with a remarkable recovery.