First Ronald McDonald House in Suffolk, at Stony Brook Children's Hospital, moves closer to reality

The first Ronald McDonald House in Suffolk County, where families of children can stay during medical emergencies, moved closer to reality Monday with the signing of a ceremonial steel beam.

Officials called the progress a major milestone for the planned 60,000-square-foot center, within walking distance of Stony Brook Children's Hospital.

Construction on the facility, which started in February, is expected to wrap up by late next year, according to Matt Campo, CEO of Ronald McDonald House Long Island. The Stony Brook center would join one in New Hyde Park, by Cohen Children’s Medical Center. 

The new facility will feature 30 bedrooms with private bathrooms, pantries, laundry machines, home-cooked meals for families and other amenities, according to Stony Brook University Hospital's website. 

At a news conference Monday, Campo said when children are facing a medical crisis, "caring for their family is not just important, it is essential." 

The hospital's partnership with Ronald McDonald House dates to 2013 when the hospital opened a family room in the nonprofit's name, Carol Gomes, CEO and chief operating officer of Stony Brook University Hospital, said at the news conference.

The new facility, Gomes said, offers something valuable to families as "a place to rest, regroup and find a little comfort during an extraordinarily stressful time."

For Alex and Lisa Mathe,  of Ronkonkoma, a place for parents to stay during hospital visits is crucial. In early 2024, the couple's daughter Patricia, now 4, was diagnosed with viral meningitis and treated at Stony Brook Children's Hospital. Lisa Mathe was then pregnant with the couple's second child, Kaylee, now 1.

"I was sleeping in the lounge chair next to her hospital bed in the hospital while pregnant," Lisa Mathe recalled. "I didn't leave until my parents forced me to leave the room. I would not leave."

Alex Mathe said parents of sick children endure a lot of stress while trying to look after their children during hospital stays. 

"It's a rough predicament to be in," Alex Mathe said. "This project is great. It brings comfort to the families. It hits home; it's right in your backyard."

Jim Wamsley, of East Northport, is Lisa Mathe's father. During Monday's event, he credited the hospital for taking care of his granddaughter and family during that period. 

"It means for the people on the Island, they don't have to go to the city, they don't have to go to other states," Wamsley said. "It's here ... It's an extension to your home while you're here going through the circumstances you're going through."

Suffolk County Executive Edward P. Romaine recalled how his grandson had seizures when he was 2 years old. The boy's parents, Romaine said, had to stay overnight at Stony Brook Children's Hospital, taking shifts to be near him. For families with children being treated for serious medical issues, the planned facility is a "game changer," Romaine said. 

"It tells you what it means to people who have a sick child who want to be able to stay here," he said. "And it also tells you the place that this is going to be — a very special place for families."