Carter Team Members Help Brighten Easter For Hospitalized Children & Their Families
Donated items fill 18 Easter baskets delivered to Roanoke’s Ronald McDonald House
ROANOKE, VA – March 26, 2024. Carter Machinery’s team members at their Salem, Va., location chose Roanoke’s Ronald McDonald House as their community service project recently and collected a variety of items needed to fill 18 Easter baskets for children who are hospitalized nearby at Carilion Children’s Hospital. Since its opening in 1984, this local Ronald McDonald House has helped more than 700 families annually by serving as their home-away-from-home and providing an invaluable support network.
Amanda Booth, a Human Resources Assistant at Carter Machinery, suggested the Ronald McDonald House as the recipient in part because she and her family have a personal connection to the organization and its mission.
“In 1999, my two sisters, dad, and I were in a really bad car accident,” Amanda shares. “I was in a coma for 24 hours, my older sister had to re-learn to walk, and my dad had pretty severe injuries as well. My parents stayed at the Ronald McDonald house in Roanoke while my sister and I were hospitalized. They helped our family so much that any time we can give back to the community, we always choose them.”
In early March, bins featuring a list of items being collected appeared in several locations around Carter’s Salem campus. Some of the items suggested by Ronald McDonald House and donated by team members included individually wrapped Easter candy, journals, playing cards, coloring books for children and adults, and thank you cards.
“We had a very good response and want to thank everyone who donated and helped assemble the baskets,” Amanda says. “Many people donated various items, as well as money that was used to purchase gift cards and the decorative Easter baskets.”
Volunteers from various departments within the company delivered the baskets to Ronald McDonald House where they were distributed to the appreciative children and their families just in time for Easter.
