The event, which took place at McDonald's restaurants across the country on Saturday, October 18, has broken the McHappy Day record and raised in excess of $3.2 million nationally.

To put this into perspective, this equates to more than 24,600 nights' accommodation in a Ronald McDonald House for families with seriously ill children.

The money raised will allow us to continue to offer our programs and services to seriously ill children and families across the country.

These programs include Ronald McDonald House, Ronald McDonald Family Rooms and the Family Retreat Program, to name a few.

The funds collected on McHappy Day will also help us with some of our future plans.

In order to meet the growing need from families, RMHC is aiming to build or extend five houses, open eight more family rooms and further develop other programs such as the Ronald McDonald Learning Program over the next few years. None of this would be possible without the support of the local community which generously continues to donate both its time and money to this valuable cause.

Thanks once again to everyone for their support, and we look forward to next year's McHappy Day.