The Orlando Magic continued its 2011-12 Magic Volunteer Program (MVP) tip off, spending time at two Ronald McDonald Houses in Central Florida on Monday, September 12. Magic staff cooked and prepared a complete lunch that included baked ziti, garlic bread, salad, cookies and beverages.
“With the help from organizations like the Orlando Magic, these homes become like a home-away-from-home for families in medical crisis,” said Laura Heidrich, development director for Ronald McDonald House Charities of Central Florida.
With two different locations in Orlando, including one near the Walt Disney Pavilion at Florida Hospital and the other at the Arnold Palmer Medical Center, mothers, fathers, siblings and other family members are just a short walk away to offer frequent care for their sick and/or injured kids.
In addition to beautiful rooms, which include just about anything one would need on a daily basis, there is a full-sized kitchen and dining room, an entertainment facility, a laundry room, a kids play area and a specially-designed Orlando Magic computer and game room.
With 59 bedrooms combined in the two homes and with each facility practically full all year long, many people got the opportunity to enjoy the Magic’s home-style cooked meal.
The MVP was developed to encourage Orlando Magic employees to get out and get involved in the community.
The program began in July of 2006 with the goal of performing 2,000 hours of community service during the 2006-07 season; over 3,800 hours were tracked that first year.
Since program inception nearly 30,000 hours in the Central Florida community have been tracked, including 7,772 hours of community service for the 2010-11 Magic season (July 1, 2010 – June 30, 2011) surpassing the goal of 6,000 hours as an organization for the second straight year.
By Josh Cohen
