Sallie Brooks Found Refuge at RMHC
June 28, 2022

Thousands of families have walked through the doors of Ronald McDonald House Charities of Greater Chattanooga to stay while their child is in the hospital. Many of those families, after they have stayed at RMHC, have chosen to give back by becoming donors, volunteers, or even board members. For Sallie Brooks, a former RMHC resident, she has chosen to give back to the organization in each and every way she possibly can.


“I didn’t realize the scope of our mission at Ronald McDonald House until my daughter was in a car wreck and we had spent two nights in the waiting room,” said Sallie. “Finally someone said you can go over across the street and there’s a place for you.”


22 years ago, Sallie and her late husband Mark’s daughter endured a horrific, life-altering car accident. This car accident resulted in their daughter Kelly undergoing numerous emergency surgeries due to ruptured intestines from the impact, facial surgery from a cracked jaw and countless broken bones in her face and a severe spinal cord injury. Kelly was 16-years-old at the time.


All the while and for months after the accident, Sallie and Mark needed to process and plan their next steps of this life changing event that left their daughter with a long journey to recovery, all while discovering Kelly was now paralyzed from the waist down.

Throughout this entire process, Sallie and Mark never felt alone. However, having been given their own personal waiting room in Erlanger Hospital due to the volume of visitors, they became overwhelmed by the support.


“It was wonderful to have that support from family and friends, but also I had no time to process what was going on or figure out what we needed to do,” shared Sallie. “So, looking back, I always say when we came to RMHC it became our refuge.”


For Sallie, the Ronald McDonald House was where she and her family could process and rest in the midst of something so horrible that their child was enduring. “It was a place Mark and I could get away from the crowd and we could even sleep a little,” said Sallie. “I will never forget the two weeks that you served me and I was in the worst state of my life I had no idea what I was doing half the time, but I didn’t have to because you all were just providing anything and everything.”


With Kelly as the oldest of their three girls, Sallie and Mark needed RMHC not only to process and take care of one another, but they needed moments to feel like a family again.


“The girls would come after school and eat the RMHC meals with us and it would give us family time, said Sallie. “Food is necessary to nourish our bodies, but it is also a comfort and a place that people can gather to eat and reconnect.”


Throughout their two weeks at their home-away-from-home, they were able to witness not only how the organization helped them, but how RMHC helps other families going through the same experience.


“Where you see the most people in this house is about two in the morning in that big kitchen. You hadn’t eaten all day because you’re trying to process,” said Sallie. “Nobody is here that’s not going through something horrible and everybody was in the middle of the night trying to find something to eat. You’d be in your pajamas in the kitchen and you run into everybody raiding the refrigerator.”


During a time when they were at a loss at how each day would look let alone the next meal would be, RMHC created a space where Sallie and Mark could tuck each of those worries away and focus solely on Kelly’s recovery.


“I think everybody can relate to being fed and comforted in a difficult time in their lives,” said Sallie. “To this day, when I walk through that door my stomach flip flops. There is a smell in this house that brings all the memories back and that’s why I am so grateful for this house.”


Now decades later, Sallie and her entire family understand the importance of Ronald McDonald House Charities and how it has shaped their lives.


During the House’s kitchen renovation in early 2022, Sallie and her family donated funds to create an ADA compliant portion of the RMHC kitchen, in honor of Mark and Kelly. Sallie continuously dedicates her time as a volunteer, board member and advocate for the continuation of keeping families close at Ronald McDonald House Charities of Greater Chattanooga.



“This place has my heart and I think it always will,” said Sallie.

Hope Under Every Roof

By Izabelle Bradley • April 29, 2025
At Ronald McDonald House Charities of Greater Chattanooga, we believe that our mission works best when it feels like family and few reflect that spirit more beautifully than the team at Southern Roofing and Exteriors. For the past year and a half, Chris and DeeDee Dyer along with their son and C.E.O, Terrell, have shown up faithfully through our Adopt-A-Meal program, preparing dinner once a month for the families staying at our House. DeeDee plans the meals, cooks them with care, and brings a sense of comfort that can’t be measured in servings. “Children are my heart,” DeeDee shared. “RMHC has always been on our radar — we’re just grateful for the opportunity to give back.” Their impact doesn’t stop in the kitchen. It’s woven into their company culture. A few weeks ago, one of their team members, Josh, started volunteering with us for Adopt-A-Meal and something clicked. After helping serve dinner, he came back for more: supporting our BugaPalüza event, helping at the front desk, and even bringing his fiancée, McKayla, to serve alongside him. What Josh shared afterward left us teary eyed. “These people are putting families together.” He said that being here and seeing the mission in action — gave him the confidence to propose. But what makes Josh’s story even more powerful is what brought him here. When Josh was 12 years old, he collapsed after a cold cross-country meet. What followed was a sudden diagnosis of pectus excavatum, a severe chest wall deformity that required major open-heart surgery. Doctors placed a stabilizing bar across his chest, and he spent seven months on bed rest. During that time, with 75 miles between their home and the hospital, Josh’s family, his parents and two younger siblings, stayed at Ronald McDonald House Charities of the Piedmont Triad in Winston-Salem, North Carolina for six days. Now, years later, he’s back in a Ronald McDonald House — not as a patient or a guest, but as a volunteer. A giver. We’re so grateful to the Dyer family and Southern Roofing and Exteriors for the love they’ve poured into our mission. From meals, to memories, to moments of connection that remind us why we do what we do. They are, in every sense, helping us keep families together.

More Than a Meal

By Izabelle Bradley • April 29, 2025
There is something about food that can hold people together, especially when life feels like it is falling apart. At Ronald McDonald House Charities of Greater Chattanooga, a warm meal is never just food. It is comfort, connection, and a reminder that families are not facing their hardest days alone. For the last thirty-five years, Ronald McDonald House Charities of Greater Chattanooga has served as a “Home away from Home” for families with critically ill or injured children receiving treatment just steps away at nearby hospitals. When families are navigating hospital stays, treatment plans, and the weight of the unknown, RMHC strives to be their safety net. That is why we provide lodging, laundry, hygiene necessities, and meals at no cost to families. Families come through our doors carrying unimaginable stress. They’re juggling hospital visits, medical decisions, and long stretches of uncertainty. In the middle of medical chaos, a warm plate of food has the power to do more than just provide sustenance, but comfort as well. That’s why every day, our team and community volunteers prepare and serve meals to the families staying under our roof. The Brown family, one of the many supported over the past year, shared just how powerful that kind of care can be. On their first night at the House, Audrea Brown sat down to a familiar dish: chicken casserole. It happened to be her favorite meal growing up, one her mom often made at home. That small moment meant a lot more than familiarity. “It’s a House you never think you’ll have to use, but when you do, it’s a Home you never forget,” said her husband, Ethan. At RMHC, the dinner table becomes a place where strangers become support systems. In the Great Room kitchen, families who may have never met before find themselves sitting side by side, opening up about their children, their stories, and their hopes. In a season full of uncertainty, that kind of shared understanding can be just as healing as the meals themselves. The Great Kitchen is open 24/7 and intentionally stocked with healthy snacks and grab-and-go meals, making sure families always have what they need day or night. Within the last year, RMHC of Greater Chattanooga has hired a Kitchen Manager/ Chef who provides more than just nourishment- through delicious, from-scratch meals, baked goods, and warm conversation, she creates a comforting space that feeds both body and spirit. Parents often stop in on their way to or from the hospital, grabbing something quick before heading back to their child’s bedside. It’s one less thing to worry about, and one more way we let them know we’ve got their back. In a world of medical charts, hospital corridors, and constant uncertainty, something as simple as a warm plate of food or a stocked fridge becomes a visible expression of care. This June, RMHC of Greater Chattanooga is proud to launch our Restaurant Give Back Month, inviting the community to help us continue providing this support to our families simply by enjoying your favorite restaurants. Throughout the month, generous community partners will donate a portion of their proceeds to help us continue keeping families near one another and the care they need. Head to our website to find out where you’re going to enjoy your next meal that heals. As we reflect on our 35 years, there is deep gratitude for the families who have trusted RMHC with their hardest days, and for the volunteers, donors, and partners who continue to show up with love and generosity, plate by plate, year after year. These acts of kindness make each meal more than just food, they become a reminder that healing doesn’t happen alone.