Derrick and Melva were looking forward to welcoming their second child in December. They had no reason to worry given the easy, uneventful pregnancy they had with their now 5-year-old daughter, Zendaya.

Melva has diabetes which increases the risk of complications during and after pregnancy. The doctor warned her and Derrick that their newborn could face irregular heartbeat and low blood sugar. Even though she was confident managing her diabetes, there were still so many unknowns.

Three weeks before her due date, Melva was rushed into an emergency C-section at Tucson Medical Center, 70 miles from home on the Tohono O’odham Nation Reservation near Sells, AZ. Zendaya stayed at home with Derrick’s mom.

Baby Greyson was born with dangerously low blood sugar. He had trouble breathing and his skin was jaundiced. Before mom and dad could even hold him, the doctors whisked him away for diagnostic tests.

“We didn’t know how serious it was at first,” Melva said. “The first time we saw him it was hard. He had a CPAP machine for his lungs and PICC line in his belly button. We couldn’t hold him for a week.”

Four days later, Melva was discharged without Greyson. The worry grew. Worst of all, the COVID-19 pandemic meant that Greyson could only have one visitor at a time. The idea of waiting in the car or driving back and forth from Sells was overwhelming. Then their social worker told them about the Ronald McDonald House.

“We had heard of the Ronald McDonald House, but we never really heard of what they offered or what the stay was like,” Derrick said. They soon learned that the Ronald McDonald House offered all the amenities of home just minutes from the hospital.

When a child is sick, “all your focus should be on the healing of your child and that’s what the Ronald McDonald House was. We weren’t stressed out about anything else,” he added.

Best of all, Zendaya, could stay with them at the House. She arrived in Tucson later that same night. “She really liked it here. She didn’t want to leave,” said Melva.

But as much as it felt like home, they still were missing their baby boy. There were times when they thought they’d be heading home but then Greyson would need to stay for a few more days. “Is it ever going to end? Am I ever going to get to take him home?” asked Melva through tears.

Greyson was in the hospital until January 7, just one day shy of turning 1 month.
As members of the Tohono O’odham Nation, community is a centerpiece of their lives, and that’s what the House was for them – a community. When Greyson and Zendaya are a little older, the family plans to return to the House to volunteer, hopefully bringing neighbors along for the journey.

“The House became a part of us. It’s something we will always remember and be appreciative of.”

When you donate to Ronald McDonald House Charities of Southern Arizona, your provide a “home-away-from-home” for families like Greyson’s.