
HPS Mechanical Funds Ronald McDonald House at Memorial  Hospital
(November, 2008) Donations poured in  Thursday to the Bakersfield Ronald McDonald House, which is under  construction on the campus of Bakersfield Memorial Hospital.
When complete, relatives of sick kids  receiving care at Memorial may stay overnight or take a breather while  little ones receive medical care. Work may be done by late spring.
Les DenHerder, owner of plumbing company  HPS Mechanical, gave a $100,000 gift. The family-owned business marks  its 50th anniversary in 2009. To celebrate, DenHerder said the company  and its 240 employees want to give back to the community.
And that’s not all: The firm offered to  provide the plumbing and labor at the house.


The  charity also received:

$50,000 from the Golden Empire McDonald’s Co-operative.
$23,325 from the Bakersfield Condors.
$16,000 from the Volkslauf Committee of the Marine Corps League.

The  1,200-square-foot building donated by  Bakersfield Memorial Bakersfield,  is the sixth Ronald McDonald House in  the Southern California region,  and the 285th in the world.
It will  feature a kitchen, laundry  facilities and computer stations. Kern’s  McDonald’s owner-operators  helped make the house a reality.
“McDonald’s  is the best friend that any  charity could possibly have,” said Vince  Bryson, executive director of  the Los Angeles Ronald McDonald House. Of  Bakersfield, he said: “I have  never quite seen a community like this —  so caring, so giving and with  no expectations in return.”
Relatives  would pay $15 per night to stay  at the house, and local Rotary Clubs  would cover those costs if a  family could not. Bakersfield Fire Capt.  Quincy Sloan knows firsthand  the comfort a Ronald McDonald House  offers. He and his family stayed at  the Ronald McDonald House in Los  Angeles when his son Evann needed care.
“When  it’s your child, it can be  devastating,” he said. “Families are going  to come through here and they  will all have the same feeling. They will  say what I’m to say to you:  thank you.”




     

     






