McHappy eases pain of children in need
Nearly 10,000 children and their parents took part in a fun run at Beijing Garden Expo Park to support Ronald McDonald House Charities.
They turned out in themed T-shirts, and red and white socks, for the fourth annual McHappy event held by the burger chain last month.
Up to 45,000 youngsters and their parents from 16 Chinese cities, including Shenyang, Jinan, Shenzhen, Changsha and Dalian, also joined in on the run to raise money for sick children.
Proceeds from the event will help fund accommodation at Ronald McDonald Houses for parents who have to travel to stay with children undergoing out-of-town medical treatment.
The project works alongside the China Soong Ching Ling Foundation, a major charity in China.
“McHappy Run has helped reach more and more people,” said Phyllis Cheung, chief executive officer of McDonald’s China. “We expect to promote healthier and happier children from generation to generation.
“In future, we will continue to open more Ronald McDonald Houses to provide free accommodation and support for families of children seeking out-of-town medical treatment,” she added.
The first Ronald McDonald House on the Chinese mainland opened in Changsha, Hunan province, in 2016.
Just five minutes walk from Hunan Children’s Hospital, the building contains 17 family suites.
Each one has a bathroom, a kitchen unit, a dining area, a laundry room and a children’s playground.
There is also 24-hour security at the apartments.
Since it was opened, 145 families have spent 6,700 nights at the Ronald McDonald House by the end of June.
As for the fast food group, it rolled out its first restaurant in the Chinese mainland in 1990.
More than 25 years later, the world’s second biggest economy is the third largest and the fastest growing market for the company which is famous for its Big Macs.
By the end of June, McDonald’s had more than 2,500 restaurants in the Chinese mainland with over 120,000 employees. Last year, the burger chain served more than 1 billion customers here.