As a way to say “thanks,” area media representatives were treated to dinner, prizes and tours of the Ronald McDonald House of the Four States on Thursday night.

“This evening is our fifth annual media informational night, it is a way for us to say thank you to our area media that do so much for keeping the Ronald McDonald House in the news and keeping people aware,” said Annette Thurston, executive director of Ronald McDonald House Charities of the Four States. “And it is also an opportunity to update all of the media on what is happening at the Ronald McDonald House and some very special events.”

The house, located at 34th and Jackson Street in Joplin, is within walking distance of nearby hospitals, Freeman Hospital and St. John’s Regional Medical Center. It opened July 27, 1998, and the first guest was registered on Aug. 20, 1998. Since then, more than 1,500 families from 30 different states and one foreign country have stayed in the house. Families from 240 different communities in the Four State area have called the house their home.

The next big event for the house is its birthday celebration on Saturday, Aug. 9.

“We are inviting the general public to our 10th birthday party celebration and that is going to be a very magical day, because Ronald will be here and his McMagical Show for the kids,” said Thurston. “It starts at 9 a.m. on Saturday, we will have pony rides, prizes and food, and a very special program with some very special guests who have stayed with us. So it is going to be a very special day for everyone in our area. We will have birthday cake and ice cream.”

Other events include the annual golf tournament on Thursday, Aug. 21, at Twin Hills Golf and Country Club, with a 1 p.m. shotgun start. And then there is the annual “Gift of Life, Gift of Love” campaign slated toward the end of the year.

“And this year, our 22-foot Christmas tree will be 0out at Hollywood Theaters, we will actually have a circus theme,” Thurston said. “And what is very exciting about that, is that the movie, that will be a private showing for children, will be Madagascar 2. Each child will receive a Happy Meal item and that is going to be fun.”

The house can accommodate nine families at anyone time. As of Thursday, there are four families.

“With two that will be arriving shortly after our event tonight (Thursday),” Thurston added. “Our Ronald McDonald House serves families of seriously ill children being treated at Freeman Hospital and St. Johns Regional Medical Center. All of our families are referred by medical personnel or social workers. But they all have one thing in common, and that is the unfortunate circumstance of having a sick child between the age of 0 and 18.”

An on-going fundraiser, which actually started back in 1986, is the brick campaign.

“The actual brick campaign itself is unique to our house, and so other houses may have that same kind of campaign, whether they have stones or such, but it is unique to us,” said Thurston. “We are over 4,500 bricks now. Once again, it is one of the more popular and sustaining programs that we have, as far as a fundraiser. Memorials and birthdays and anniversaries. People just like to use those bricks, it is wonderful. Here we are sitting in a patio with these bricks. This year, we actually recognized our volunteers with their own special brick in honor of 10th anniversary.”

Bricks can be purchased for a $100 donation.

Since the house opened up, many previous guests have returned to help out.

“We get several thank you letters, many of them in response to our volunteers and how they are treated here and very thankful for what we have,” said Thurston. “We have our guests return as volunteers. We have guests that make presentations and we have them return as overnight managers.”

For more information, contact the Ronald McDonald House of the Four States at 624-CARE.