Terry's House — The Mack Advantage

I got involved with Terry’s House 3 years ago and it has proven to be one of the best decisions I have ever made. Being a volunteer at Terry’s House has enriched my life in more ways than one—by giving me perspective on days I’ve been caught up in my own little world, by reminding me what truly is important in life, and by giving me a crystal-clear image of what true strength and resilience looks like.

If you are new around here, let me tell you a little bit about this amazing place. Terry’s House is a hospitality home directly across the street from CRMC in Downtown Fresno, the only hospital with a Level 1 trauma center in the Central Valley. Terry’s House provides a home-away-from-home for the families of critical care patients during one of the most scary and uncertain times in their lives.

This past month a charity group that I am a part of, which we simply call Dinner Club, chose to put together goodie bags full of essentials for the resident’s of Terry’s House. These families in crisis drop everything to be with their loved one in critical care, forgetting simple things like toothpaste or shampoo. Giving these bags to the families checking in is just a small way to take a little burden off their plate.

After assembling these simple goodie bags, our group took to the kitchen to help serve dinner to the residents. We also brought along some Rice Krispie treat decorating kits and set up a decorating station for all the kiddos that were staying the house to just be kids for a little while. It was truly special to watch the kiddos laugh and create— and simply just be kids for a little while in midst of the circumstances their family is in.

Nothing that our group does is extravagant, but it is important.