Fun Run, Real Impact: St. James Challenge Helps Ronald McDonald House

The St. James Challenge brought together hundreds of people — families, friends, colleagues (and even Wolfie!) — to support the future Ronald McDonald House at Stony Brook.

The May 10 event included a 5-mile challenge and a 5K fun run/walk with Stony Brook Children’s Hospital (SBCH) as the presenting sponsor. In total, 645 people of all ages signed up to walk or run, and an amazing $86,000 was raised.

The energy was high and SBCH red bandanas flooded the course. Stony Brook was well represented, as five teams — Milana’s Crew-SBCH, SBED Lifesavers, SBU General Counsel, Stony Brook Men’s Basketball and AAPD Student Chapter of the School of Dental Medicine — joined dozens of community groups in rallying for this meaningful cause.

Before the race, SBCH Physician-in-Chief Carolyn Milana, MD, addressed the crowd and spoke about the impact of the new Ronald McDonald House, opening in 2027.

“This house will be so much more than a building. It will be a home away from home — a place where families can stay close to their children while they receive care at Stony Brook Children’s. Every mile, every step today brings us closer to making this house a reality, for the families who will one day need it most.”

Event organizer and community leader Cynthia Lippe echoed that sentiment and highlighted the team effort behind the scenes.

“This event was as much a fundraiser as it was a community builder,” she said. “We had a tiny team for planning, but over 65 volunteers on site to manage the day-of logistics, including 40 middle and high school students who manned registration, race route intersections, water stations, a lemonade booth, and all the children’s activities.”