Ava's - Raise to Praise

Want to join me in making a difference? I'm raising money to benefit Ronald McDonald House Charities of Greater Cincinnati, and any donation will help make an impact. Thanks in advance for your contribution to this cause that means so much to me.

Hello, I’m Ava McErlane. I’m here to talk about my 2021 Raise to Praise Toy Drive. The past 3 years, I’ve done a Toy Drive for Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. If you don’t know my story, when I was younger, I had to have surgery and spent a week in the hospital. Cincinnati Children’s was so amazing and made me feel safe and at home. The Child Life program made me feel good and was a great distraction from my hospital stay. This being said, I wanted to do something to help other children! So, I went to my mom one day and said “I want to do something to help children who are in the hospital during the holiday season”. So, that is how my Raise to Praise was formed.

The Toy Drives have been so successful! I can’t wait to start again this year. This year I’ve decided to help Cincinnati Children’s in a different way. I’m going to do a Toy & Personal items drive for the Ronald McDonald House here in Cincinnati. If you don’t know about the Ronald McDonald House, it is a GREAT program associated with Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. They offer housing for families with children that are being treated at the hospital so they can be close to their little patients. Right now, there are about 622 families that have lived in the house with an average stay of 48 nights. Ronald McDonald House helps families from 38 different states and 4 countries!!

While my own story doesn’t include the Ronald McDonald house, I wanted to find different way to help patients and families. There is a need for toys, gifts and personal items for the patients and families.

My 1st year, 2018, I collected over $500 in toys.

My 2nd year, 2019, was a year I collected over $1,500 cash donations and over 1,300 toys valuing over $10,000!!

My 3rd year, 2020, with COVID, I did "Holiday Bundles" which were coordinated through Cincinnati Children's'. These were all online donations and over $2,100 was collected. This enabled us to buy 84 Holiday Bundles for patients.

I know you all are wondering “How Can I Help?” Well, this year I’ve created an Amazon Wish List where you can purchase the requested items, and they will be shipped to me directly.

You can also purchase these items on your own and drop them off at my home, or arrange pick up with my parents. I will also take any cash donations. All these will be collected, and I plan on delivering these items before Dec. 10th! I can’t wait to see what a difference we can make!

More information about Ronald McDonald House Charities of Greater Cincinnati: Cincinnati's Ronald McDonald House provides a "home away from home" for families with critically ill children while they receive medical treatment. We surround families with hope and support and bring a sense of normalcy to children as they heal.