McHappy Day has arrived, and support is flowing in droves to the Swift Current McDonald’s location on South Service Road. 

McDonald’s annual event directs ten per cent of their earnings towards the Ronald McDonald House Charities. All the money raised in Saskatchewan will remain in the province, intending to help local people when visiting family members in the hospital, to prevent the expense of hotel rooms or other accommodations. 

Cassidy and Mathew Vaughan are residents of Swift Current who saw firsthand the importance of these hostels with their son, Parker. 

“We stayed at the Ronald McDonald House in both Saskatoon and Edmonton for a total of around two months,” stated Cassidy Vaughan. “Parker had open heart surgery when he was six weeks old, so we utilized both Ronald McDonald houses for that.” 

Now, the happy family has come to McDonald’s to show their gratitude for the donations. The fast-food location is holding games, giveaways and selling specialty items to promote the charitable event. 

“We're really happy to be here and we are very glad to see all the support that Ronald McDonald House is going to get from today,” expressed Mrs. Vaughan. “They deserve all the support in the world. Those facilities, they are just truly, truly amazing places to be.” 

Maria Gevana, a shift manager at McDonald’s put a lot of effort into the organization of the event, blowing up 200 balloons with other employees. 

"We're going to have fun activities until around 4:00 PM for kids,” explained Gevana. “We're going to give them games along with giveaways from McDonald's. We have free balloons and a photo booth if they want to take pictures for McHappy Day.”  

(Photo by Alex Kozroski)(Photo by Alex Kozroski)