It's McHappy Day across Canada.
The day where your purchases from McDonald's restaurants help raise funds to support Canadian children in need.
On May 8, 10 per cent of all-day sales, along with 100 per cent of all other funds raised, will be donated to the Ronald McDonald House of Southwestern Ontario, In Honour of the Ones We Love & Youth Wellness Hub Windsor-Essex.
Kelly Dunwoody is a mom of twins, Olive and Haisley, with the family spending a few months at the London Ronald McDonald House.
After being born in Windsor, the twins were admitted to the NICU at Windsor Regional, but after a few days Olive was transferred to London Health Sciences to be treated for a grade 3 Intraventricular Hemorrhage (IVH) and seizures.
Dunwoody told AM800's The Shift with Patty Handysides that the Ronald McDonald House offered them a home away from home.
"They individual rooms for families, I don't know what I thought, maybe I thought it'd be a big dorm room with a bunch of bunk beds, I honestly did not anticipate anything this fantastic," she said. "We had our own bathroom, there was hot meals, there was coffee around the clock, the staff knew how to read a room. I'm assuming they received the right kind of training, but they know when to approach you, and they know when to give you the space."
Dunwoody says when they were away from the hospital, the house allowed them to connect with other families.
"We were able because of the house to jump back and forth multiple times throughout the day to go catch a quick meal, come back, we were beside her all day long, but what the house offered was an opportunity for us to go take a breathe, grab some food, grab a quick shower, connect with other parents who were going through things that were equally as traumatic if not even more," Dunwoody said.
Dunwoody says they were able to get a room fairly quickly when they applied, something that other families often aren't able to do.
"And that's part of the reason why we're advocating so much as family ambassadors to help raise awareness for this cause," she said. "The house isn't big enough to support all the families and their needs, so we really lucked out. I don't really have a perspective to offer as to what it would have been like if we didn't have it, but I have enough sympathy in my pockets to see what it could have been like," Dunwoody added.
AM800, Virgin Radio, Pure Country and CTV Windsor personalities will be at two McDonald's locations in Windsor on Thursday: