Julia Cerda said both her daughter and son have undergone organ transplants at Jackson Memorial Hospital.

Cerda, who lives in Texas and counted on the Ronald McDonald House during her stays in Miami, is back as her son is undergoing cancer treatment.

“We keep our faith in God and our trust in him,” Cerda said. “My children were both born with their diagnosis, but they’re both here for a reason.

Cerda, who has been a guest at the Ronald McDonald House since June, said both of her kids inherited “a dominant gene” that she carries.

“I don’t show any symptoms. I don’t have a history of it in the family. I was told by a doctor, it was one in a million, and I got two in a million,” Cerda said.

At 16 years old, Delilah started to travel to Miami when she was a baby. She had a central nutrition line that, Cerda said, damaged her liver. She underwent a seven-organ transplant in 2011 at JMH.

“Liam was born six years later, so we came for Liam’s eight-organ transplant, and ever since 2016, we’ve been coming every year as well,” Cerda said.

Liam has been undergoing chemotherapy after he was diagnosed with a form of post-transplant cancer.

“Staying at the Ronald McDonald’s House has been a blessing,” Cerda said. “I can’t stress it enough how much they’ve helped me not stress.”

Soraya Rivera, the executive director of The Ronald McDonald House, said her team is dedicated to making the facility feel like a home away from home.

“It’s not only a place for families to sleep and rest and eat, but it’s just a community of support,” Rivera said.

The guests’ average stay is about 30 days. Rivera said strangers become family.

“Their families are going through something that you don’t even want to think about,” Rivera said. “Staying, at here, you know, we’re talking about relieving the burden of traveling gas money, staying at a hotel.”

For more information about volunteering for the Ronald McDonald House, visit this page.

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