On the morning of Oct. 23, 2003, Ronald McDonald Charities of Western Washington hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony to herald the opening of their new Ronald McDonald House at 5130 40^th Ave. in Seattle. More than a hundred dedicated supporters and contributors attended the invitation-only affair, including Seattle Mayor Greg Nickles, Jamie Moyers, Seattle Marnier, and Karen Moyers, Jamie’s wife and partner in The Moyer Foundation.

I received an invitation to attend the event, but was not able to go. To ensure the In Apolo’s Name project was represented, I asked a couple of IAN contributors and friends, Tom and Jennifer Walker to attend and take some pictures for us. They also answered a couple of questions for us regarding the event and the new house.

IAN: Wow. So, almost two years in the making, what was it like to see the new house?

Jennifer: It is really beautiful. It fits well within the neighborhood. You, of all people, really should have gone. I think you would have been moved to see it.

IAN: I know. I can only imagine. What was the crowd like?

Tom: Ronald McDonald was there on a Segway. He would just wheel up to people and start talking to them, hand them McDonaldland cookies and Happy Meal toys. He seemed to be focusing on all the little kids in the crowd, of course, and also anyone who looked important. I guess Jennifer and I didn’t pass for either.

IAN: Do I sense some bitterness?

Tom: Yes. LOL!

IAN: So, what else did you see?

Jennifer: The ceremony was essentially a parade of speakers expressing pride and thankfulness – which you might expect. Margaret Larson (local broadcasting celebrity) emceed the ceremony. She was good, kept it rolling, had appropriate transitions from speaker to speaker.

Pat McDonald, the head honcho at RMHC, spoke first. She’s a very pleasant lady; she made everyone in the crowd feel really good. Another lady, Caryn Kennemore, spoke about her personal experience as a guest of the RMH with her daughter Monyka, who has been in and out of hospitals a lot through her life. She was very sincere and moving. There were some RMHC executives who spoke. Jamie Moyer and his wife spoke, too. They had raised $3 million for the house. He was obviously moved by the whole thing. He had to pause a few times as his voice began to crack. He and Caryn were the most moving speakers.

Then our Mayor Nickles wrapped up all the speakers with a thank you and congratulations. Then they cut the ribbon. Some man sort of popped up in front of me as it was being cut, so the picture I took is the moment right after the ribbon was cut. Sorry.

IAN: No prob. How long was the whole thing?

Jennifer: A lot of people are involved. We were probably standing for about 40 minutes listening to everyone. But it was fine. Definitely had a lump in my throat a couple of times.

IAN: What happened next?

Jennifer: We were welcomed into the house. The front lobby is very nice. They had refreshments. Lots of people talking, admiring the house.

We took one of the little tours they were offering. I was a little annoyed by people talking about decorating elements and admiring the color schemes. They weren’t in the wrong by any means, I just was feeling more reverent toward the actual purpose of the house.

We toured a one-room and two-room unit. The one room is the kind Apolo’s name will appear on – very similar to a standard hotel room – two full beds, a bathroom, and small seating area with an entertainment unit. Unfortunately, they weren’t completely finished at the time of the ribbon cutting, so Apolo’s room did not have his name on it yet.

IAN: Yeah, I know, that’s a bummer, but RMHC said they’d send us a picture when it is up. What else did you see?

Jennifer: They have lots of community areas. It really is like a commune. I think that is part of the appeal – people going through tough times with their kids can commiserate with each other. They have a community kitchen that has a small refrigerator designated for each family in the house. The dinning hall has a log cabin look. It’s really cute. The kids’ tables have little tree stumps for seats and cute picnic graphics on the tables.

Tom: We got a tour of the bone marrow transplant building. This is full of “apartments” including a kitchen and so on. All the features were attractive, and disguised the more sobering construction choices, like a sink in the kids bedroom, medical equipment closets, and a lot of easily washable Formica, Pergo, and acrylic materials.

IAN: Did you find our paver?  

Jennifer: Yep. We were walking around all the paver-covered areas with our heads down looking for it. I finally had to ask where it was. The IAN paver is on the very front left corner of the right front entrance, which is where the ribbon cutting was staged. Maybe that’s why we over looked it.

IAN: I really wish I could have been there, but I thank you guys so much for going and taking the pictures.

Jennifer: It was totally worth missing some work. We are honored you asked us. I’m only sorry I’m not a better photographer.

IAN: You are great. Don’t you worry about it. Thank you again!

For more pictures from the ribbon cutting, click here.