A Home Away From Home

Traveling for your child’s treatment is common. You may need to be closer to your state’s main children’s hospital, be interested in traveling for a second opinion, clinical trial or to receive a special surgery somewhere far from home. At first, my husband, Chris and I were excited at the thought of having options for our son’s treatment. Soon, we felt enormous stress planning the trip. One factor was where we would stay. Jamicia Tillman lived two hours from her son’s hospital and he needed daily radiation. She needed a place to stay as well. We are sharing our personal experiences with staying at a “home away from home” for anyone else who wants to know more about what it is like.

So what was it like staying in the home away from home?

Jamicia– We were originally planning to stay in a hotel but towards the time we needed to be there our financial support for this option fell through. We were so thankful that the Ronald McDonald House made a way for our family of five to stay there at the last minute. The house was amazing and I could tell that people but time and effort into making it feel comfortable. There was an awesome library that had a lot of tools and resources for the kids. It helped a lot when our boys couldn’t be in school at that time. My son loved the support dogs that were at the hospital and we were so surprised that the crew came to the house as well! He really loved that. The rooms themselves weren’t super up-to-date but it’s amazing that everything was provided on donations alone!

Was there anything that was tough about staying at a home away from home?

Jamicia- The main thing I noticed was that the managers were not friendly. I felt judged and stereotyped for needing a free place to stay. That was what made me the most uncomfortable.

Chris– I stayed at the Boston House. The televisions were really outdated so I couldn’t stream any television and didn’t have cable either. The internet was spotty which made it hard for me to work remotely. The bed wasn’t really comfortable so I ended up taking a break at hotel just to get a good night’s sleep before coming back to the house. Still, my wife slept every night in the hospital with our son. She reminds me I was a lot more comfortable than her.

What was your favorite thing about staying there?

Chris- The best part of staying there was that it was free. We were planning on being out of state for about two weeks, not two months. It really helped financially to have a place that wouldn’t wreck our budget.

Jamicia- Honestly, my favorite part about being at the Ronald McDonald House was meeting so many other families. We got to know one another and supported each other. Some families had been there for months and were able to share resources and advice with us when we got there. All in all, after being there a couple months, I was so relieved when we could finally go home! I cried tears of joy. I am thankful though that it was there when we needed it.

Have you had an experience at a home away from home? Please share it in our community group and look for more helpful resources for a childhood cancer journey here!