Five entries, all of them unusual, paraded in the Virden Agricultural outdoor ring for the Ronald McDonald House Charity class at Virden Draft Horse Show on Saturday, July 28.
Wendy Galagan, the CEO for Ronald McDonald House Charities in Manitoba presented the winning ribbon to an entry “that speaks to our heart the most.” This was Owen Anderson, who “has been supported by the Ronald McDonald House,” she explained.
The sign on his costumed pony read, “Thanks RMHC for giving my parents a place to stay when I was born, Oct. 2003.”
“We keep families close during times of childhood illness,” said Galagan. She said that last year 2,208 families from Winnipeg, across Manitoba, into neighbouring provinces and even further abroad, were helped.
The Ronald McDonald House program is designed to serve rural Manitoba families with overnight accommodation; there is also a day use facility.
“We often are full to capacity at Ronald McDonald House. We have been approved to build a new Ronald McDonald House,” she said. The land is already purchased, and when that building is complete, in about two years, this will bring their overnight facilities from 14 bedrooms to 40 bedrooms.
