Thursday, December 17, 2009

Feature Family for Ronald McDonald House

The DiCarlo Family and the Chargers lucky charm

It’s a game plan this burly football coach never expected to pull out of his play book: “coaching” his tiny newborn son in the most important plays of his life. That’s what San Marcos physical education teacher Roger DiCarlo and his wife Nicole are doing in their daily visits to the hospital. Their son Travis was born with the left side of his heart severely underdeveloped, and at two months old, he’s had his first open heart surgery. The family is looking forward to the day they can take Travis home for the first time.

Since Travis’ birth in late October, the DiCarlo's have called the Ronald McDonald House of San Diego their “home away from home.” They can sleep just a hundred feet away from where Travis is at Rady Children’s Hospital, rather than spend hours driving back and forth to their home in Temecula. Nicole DiCarlo, a first grade teacher, can keep in touch with family and colleagues through our Wi-Fi access while Travis is napping in the hospital. She’s just steps away from Travis’ side if she needs to get there quickly.

The DiCarlos are big Chargers fans, and the team’s winning streak started just after Travis’ birth. Every Sunday, Roger puts new Chargers garb on his son. Little Travis may not know it yet, but he’s got the Ronald McDonald House cheering for him—with staff and volunteers doing all they can to take care of the basics for Nicole and Roger so they can care for Travis. He’s even got the San Diego Chargers punting and kicking for him and for other Ronald McDonald House families through our fundraiser, www.SDKicks4Kids.com! See page 10 for more info.

Roger says, “We really feel so lucky to have a place like the Ronald McDonald House. The staff and volunteers have made us feel so comfortable as we go through the most difficult time of our lives.” The DiCarlo's have a blog you can follow for updates: www.teamtravis.info. We’re rooting for you, Travis!

“It is so nice to be able to focus on our son’s care and not worry about a place to sleep or getting a warm meal.” –the DiCarlo's

Link to the Newsletter

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