As told by Riley’s mother, Meredith

I wanted to start my story on Riley with a quick background. My name is Meredith and I am a single mom to two amazing, strong, beautiful girls. Their dad passed when Riley was 4. Both of my daughters have Primary Immune Deficiency Disease and receive monthly infusions that are about 7 hours long.

Riley’s journey began in that wonderful year of 2020 when she was 9 years old. She was an avid soccer player who played 6 days a week for a club team as their starting goalie. Around Thanksgiving she started limping. I wasn’t sure if it was growing pains or if maybe she pulled a muscle. The pain got really bad after she returned for Monday’s practice after two-week holiday break. On Tuesday she was unable to stand and screaming in pain.

Riley was diagnosed with Perthes Disease the very next day. I had never heard of this disease, so I went to work researching what it was. I learned it’s a disease in which the blood flow stops going to the hip and the femoral head dies. The normal age range for this disease is 2-8 and 4 times more likely in boys. So lil miss Riley decided to be the rare of the rare. She was considered very old for this disease and therefore much more aggressive treatment would be needed. We live in Arizona and at that time only three doctors in the US actually specialize in this, so after great research I decided to make an appointment with Dr. Standard in Baltimore.

Riley’s first big surgery was in April 2021. She had an external fixator for 4 months. During this time is when I learned about the Ronald McDonald House. We stayed there for two days after she had her fixator removed and really just stayed in our room as it was still “COVID time”.

A couple of months later, Riley’s hip collapsed again and we found out she would need a big surgery with 6 pins placed in her hip and we would need to stay in Baltimore for 3 weeks.

I was so scared that I wouldn’t be able to afford this, I was afraid we wouldn’t have anywhere to stay, and I thought I would lose my job not being able to work. I called Ronald McDonald House Maryland and was absolutely blessed to find out they were able to fit us in.  Even though we had stayed at the Ronald McDonald House for a couple days prior I had no idea what they offered and how much they take care of their families. So, I learned that not only did I have a safe place for us to stay for the three weeks, but they have a learning room so Riley could keep up with her studies and an amazing place for me to work so I was able to keep my job.

I was also worried about being able to afford to eat out for three weeks, but of course the Ronald McDonald House has that covered as well. They have a huge, amazing kitchen so you can order groceries and cook. They offer snacks in the pantry throughout the day. And every night they serve a hot dinner.   

As if that wasn’t enough most nights, they have activity hour to keep the kids happy. Sometimes they have people come in and do arts and crafts, pet therapy, and on special occasions they do bingo and give out prizes.

For me, the best part of the house is the other families that you meet. Everyone there is going through something different, yet we all get it. Our kids are hurting. We are away from home and we are scared, but these other families that were once strangers have now become family.

Each year the Ronald McDonald House does a 5K called the Red Shoe Shuffle. They are not kidding when they say it’s the best day of the year. You can sign up as an individual or you can sign up as a group. Our group has gotten larger each year with the families we have met through Ronald McDonald House Maryland. The Red Shoe Shuffle has become one of the best times a year for our family. It’s a reminder of how much the Ronald McDonald House helped our family and how much they help others. Each Ronald McDonald kid gets a cape, so during the Shuffle, you can see all of these amazingly strong kiddos and see what who and what you are raising money for. 

Riley had 13 surgeries and 5 blood transfusions in 4 years. 

Her first three shuffles she was in a wheelchair for the whole/most of the 5k.  Last year was the first year Riley was able to walk the entire thing. When the staff heard she had walked the whole thing and was about to finish, everyone was at that finish line waiting to cheer her on and give her their wonderful hugs.

I can’t count the number of flights back and forth from Arizona to Baltimore we had but I can tell you that each visit we felt the same amount of LOVE from our Ronald McDonald House family and THAT’s why the Red Shoe Shuffle is so important to us.