The Canberra Raiders celebrated their association with Ronald McDonald House Canberra on Monday, with several players visiting the Canberra House to participate in the ‘Meals from the Heart’ program.

The ‘Meals from the Heart’ program sees volunteer groups help to provide a home cooked dinner to the families staying with Ronald McDonald House.

It gives families time to relax and replenish after spending a long day at the hospital at their child’s bedside.

Raiders stars Josh Dugan, Tom Learoyd-Lahrs, Joel Thompson, Brett White and Sam Williams visited Ronald McDonald House yesterday to cook meals for the families with the expert guidance of La Scala owner Gabriele Saccardo.

The Raiders also presented the house with some HART Sports equipment and Raiders drink bottles, as well as some Children’s Bikes and Scooters for use around the house.

Prior to arriving at Ronald McDonald House the players also paid a visit to the paediatrics wing where they handed out presents and got to know the patients.

“It was great to put on the Santa hat and hand out presents to the kids in hospital,” said second rower Joel Thompson.

“Seeing the children’s faces light up when we came through the door with presents was a great feeling and really rewarding.”

Thompson said it was great to be able to provide the families of the sick children with a nice meal to end the day and said it’s a small gesture they can make to help them in a tough time.

“We’re not the most talented chefs going around so we were lucky that Gab from La Scala was on hand to help us out,” he said. “The families at Ronald McDonald House are going through a really tough time so we were all happy to cook them dinner and try to lift their spirits.”