Swampscott Resident New CEO At NE Ronald McDonald House Charities

SWAMPSCOTT, MA — As Gretchen Manning began the new and exciting — yet daunting — task of taking over an essential non-profit amid the challenges of a pandemic this winter, the Swampscott resident was able to turn to her North Shore friends for a bit of a starting boost.

The new Ronald McDonald House of New England Chief Executive Officer said she was looking for ways to reorganize the Charlestown location to make it more mobile accessible for children while keeping with virus physical distancing protocols.

"I put out what we were looking for on one of the Swampscott message boards and the response was amazing," she told Patch. "We had 40 responses within the hour."

Beatrice Reality and New Leaf Redesign wound up contributing to the effort to make for a safe and comfortable space for families while their loved ones are being treated at Boston hospitals.

"The Swampscott community has already been extremely generous," Manning said.

While the goodwill toward most charities has only grown during the pandemic, those charities' ability to generate donations are hampered by the lack of major event fundraising. Manning takes over the position after a year in which the pandemic not only affected how Ronald McDonald House can provide its services but also how it pays for them.

"All nonprofits were hit extremely hard and we're not any different," she allowed. "The mission continues and we're continuing to serve as many families as we can. I'll be pounding the pavement looking to make up for that revenue loss."

She said the Charlestown location, which has 11 apartments, served 140 families over 1,700 nights of stay in 2020. The average family stayed 36 nights while loved ones were being treated at Mass. General Hospital, Children's Hospital of Boston and Spaulding Rehabilitation.

Last year, families came to Ronald McDonald facilities in New England from 19 states and seven different countries.

While Ronald McDonald House was able to keep the apartments open during the business shutdowns, its outreach and support programs look much different than they did one year ago.

"All of the fun activities that we do to help support our families have pivoted to virtual models," she said of programs like Zoom craft nights to help parents and children cope with the hospitalization of a family member. "The core of our program is family-centered care — helping to support the entire family through our programming and services. The moms, in particular, enjoy taking part in nature (near Boston Harbor) and looking out in the water, and the effect that has on them in terms of their inner peace."

Manning said she volunteered at a Ronald McDonald House in Albany, N.Y. when she was younger and then began helping out the Boston location when she moved from New York City to Massachusetts in 2004.

She most recently served as Deputy Executive Director of the Massachusetts Association of Community Colleges before coming to Ronald McDonald House of New England as its CEO.

"Gretchen is a respected community leader and throughout her career she has shown strategic vision helping each organization she has worked with rise to the next level," Paula Wright, president of the Ronald McDonald House of New England Board of Directors, said. "Her leadership skills coupled with her passion for our mission, make her uniquely well-suited for the role of Chief Executive Officer of RMHCNE.

"We are fortunate to have someone with Gretchen's vision and breadth of background lead Ronald McDonald House Charities of New England forward."

In her new position, Manning has already created the Families First Fund to support "excellence in family-centered programs." She invites individuals and corporate partners to help RMHCNE comprehensively support families during her inaugural year at the helm by visiting the CEO's Families First Fund here.

"We've had to pivot from more event-driven fundraising with community relations to more virtual events and individual and corporate fundraising," she said.

A graduate of Russell Sage College and SUNY-Albany, she earned a post-graduate educational certificate in Higher Education Crisis Leadership from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

She is also active in North Shore community organizations and is a member of the Board of Directors for the MA Women's Political Caucus.

"I feel privileged to be working alongside the local healthcare experts, our team at RMHCNE, our volunteers and our dedicated Board of Directors to fulfill our critical mission," she said. "My heart is truly bursting with gratitude."

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(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)