For so many families living across New Mexico, parents face health crises, requiring their child to start treatments immediately, undergo major surgeries, and complex care. While already processing the stress and uncertainty from their child’s health complications, parents often need to travel hours to a metro-area hospital, including The University of New Mexico Hospital, for the necessary treatment.
This was the terrifying reality for the Morales family this year.In May 2024, the rambunctious and superhero-loving Harlan Morales was playing like any other toddler his age. A collection of bruises on his legs piqued the concern of a family friend, who said it could be a pre-indicator for blood cancer. A doctor in Ruidoso, New Mexico performed testing and immediately referred Harlan for more conclusive testing at the UNM Children’s Hospital.
Without hesitation, Dad Joseph, Mom Valerie, two-year-old Harlan and his seven-month-old brother Milo Morales made the three-hour drive from their home.
Shortly after arriving in Albuquerque and with more testing, the Morales family found out that Harlan has Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML).
AML is a fast-growing cancer that happens when a person’s bone marrow produces too many white blood cells. Treatment cycles include multiple bone marrow transplants, chemotherapy, and frequent blood draws. Joseph Morales was told his son would have to undergo five treatment cycles at the UNM Children’s Hospital. Each cycle is about month long, with two week breaks at home in-between.
Ronald McDonald House Charities- NM: A home away from home
With that treatment plan--one of the first questions this family from Ruidoso had was – where would they and their seven-month-old stay for a month while Harlan received care in Albuquerque?
“We had really nowhere to go, and the social workers here had mentioned Ronald McDonald House,” Joseph Morales said. “So, they called and got us referred over there, and the Ronald McDonald House staff have just been fantastic.”
In order to ease the stress of that travel on top of treatment, UNM Hospital has partners like Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) to make sure patient families who live outside Bernalillo County don’t have to think about where they will stay, what they will eat, and how they will cover those costs while their child receives care.
It's the basic necessities of life, and if you're facing the fact that your child is having to travel out of town to see a medical professional, you're in stress. If you have a sick child, you have a sick family. We can't underestimate what that does to help the family and give them any type of comfort of home and any relief that we're able to provide.
In addition to meeting basic needs at no cost, RMHC also provides common spaces for families to enjoy with televisions, instruments, a meditation garden, and even laundry services.
Joseph Morales said when they arrived at RMHC both Harlan and his baby brother were greeted by several stuffed animals and gifts and it didn’t take long for Harlan to get comfortable.
“Harlan just started running around like it was a friend's house or his home,” Joseph Morales said.
While Harlan was completing his first cycle of treatment, the Morales family was hit with more bad news.
“After the first cycle, they told us we were going to be allowed to go home for a few days, but that was right when the fires hit, and our area, where we live, was evacuated,” Joseph Morales said.
The South Fork Fire destroyed more than 1,400 homes in Lincoln County, between June and July 2024. On top of worrying how their young son would react to treatment, the Morales family also worried if they would have a home to return to afterward.
But with support from UNM Children’s Hospital and RMHC, Joseph and Valerie Morales felt like they could focus on their son’s treatment. UNM Children’s Hospital provided compassionate and comprehensive care for Harlan, while RMHC took care of his family.
“RMCHC better than a hotel,” Valerie Morales added. “The rooms are nice and clean. They make food every night and take care of you.”
Both parents said it was a heavy weight off their shoulders to not have to worry about paying for meals and a comfortable place to sleep near UNM Children’s Hospital.
“Instead of going home, worrying about something happening to him, having to drive three hours, we could stay there and have a five-minute walk, get here to do labs and make sure he's taken care of,” Valerie Morales said.
Miraculously, Harlan went into remission after his first treatment cycle, which means his time at RMHC will soon come to a close.
“It’s a true blessing from God,” Joseph Morales said. “We're very thankful, very blessed, and we pray every night for him and for all the other patients here.”
Another miracle, the family’s home was spared from the South Fork Fire.
Helping Other Ronald McDonald House Families
There are two RMHC houses in Albuquerque, with a total of 51 rooms that are typically full every night, and there is no time limit for how long a family can stay. RMHC relies on community support in order to provide families with what they need, whether that be in the form of food, services, entertainment, toiletries, and more.
“Anything you would need in your own home, we try and provide for you, so we can relieve the stress, we can relieve the brain power, the decision making, and that energy can be directed back to your child,” said Jessica Wright, the CEO of Ronald McDonald House Charities of New Mexico.
The Morales family is now wrapping up Harlan’s final two treatment cycles at UNM Children’s Hospital. But that’s not stopping them from paying it forward. They, along with other families are taking the opportunity to give their support to the program that supported them when they needed it most.
Harlan created an original art piece, featuring his favorite superhero, Captain America, to be auctioned off alongside the creations of other children whose lives have been touched by RMHC, at Farm to Table(aux), a fundraising gala in Albuquerque in November. All proceeds will benefit the organization.
“It's so cool to see the creativity of these kiddos, as young as two years old, come in and draw what RMHC means to them, or home, or family, or love, those very basic concepts,” Wright said. “It’s heartbreaking and beautiful.”
While the kids can express themselves through painting, for their parents, the gratitude for their home away from home is often hard to put into words.
“A lot of them stay in touch after they leave,” Wright said. “They often can't even articulate what it means, because in some ways it's so basic, but yet it's so life changing for them. We really allowed them to give everything they had into their child that's being treated, and not have to worry about, ‘What am I going to have for dinner? Do I have clean clothes? Where am I going to sleep? How am I going to afford all of this?’ It sounds basic, but it's just monumental for them”
Other Ways to Give
Wright said they have local McDonald’s owner operators, fundraisers and generous donations from community members to thank for keeping the program alive, and they are always looking for people willing to donate or volunteer.