30 Jul A Place for 5-year-old Remington to Heal

Remington loves to spend his time climbing, jumping and zooming down the slide at the Cambridge House playground.

Funded by a Devin Booker Starting Five Grant to Ronald McDonald House Charities of Central and Northern Arizona (RMHCCNAZ), this playground is much more than a place to take a break from ongoing cancer treatment. Hanging out there is one of the rare times the 5-year-old gets to feel like a regular kid.

For his mom, Winona Mills, it’s a place she knows is safe.

“It’s super clean here,” says Winona of RMHCCNAZ. “They’re cleaning all the time, which is especially important for immunocompromised kids. They even sanitize the playground outside, that’s how clean it is.”

That kind of attention to detail could be lifesaving for Remington, who was diagnosed with leukemia in July 2024 and has spent much of the past year in and out of Phoenix Children’s.

It was just another summer day in the Mills household for Winona, her husband, little Remington and his two sisters. But when Winona noticed her son was pale and covered in bruises, the family dropped everything and drove from their Kingman home to a hospital in Bullhead City. Doctors said Remington was in critical need of a blood transfusion. He was immediately transferred to Phoenix Children’s, where treatment began within hours.

His first hospital stay lasted 28 days. For the first few weeks, Winona’s father helped pay for the family to stay at a hotel. But when doctors said Remington would need to be near the hospital for many months, the family was referred to RMHCCNAZ.

“If we didn’t have Ronald McDonald House, I legitimately don’t know what we would do,” says Winona. “We live three and a half hours away from here. If we had to pay for a hotel, we’d be in debt up to our eyeballs.”

Even when Remington was discharged, he couldn’t go far. His immune system was so fragile that he needed to be within 60 minutes of the hospital at all times.

“Without an immune system, an hour can be the difference between life and death,” says Winona.

In December, his immune system improved enough for a short trip home to celebrate Remington’s fifth birthday and the holidays. But just a short time after returning home, he caught a virus and had to return to Phoenix at once via Life Flight — the first time either he or Winona had ever flown.

“It was a very stressful time,” says Winona. “Especially for someone who’s never flown before.”

Throughout their nearly one year stay at Ronald McDonald House, Remington has bonded with many of the staff – who find little things he can do to help when he volunteers to do big chores like assist with the laundry or sweep and mop.

“Ronald McDonald House isn’t like a hotel,” Winona says. “It’s much more family oriented. There’s a sense of community. There are places to keep kids entertained. We have a full-sized kitchenette, so we can cook when we want to cook. Staying in a hotel was terrible with an immunocompromised child.”

At Ronald McDonald House, life is more manageable and more connected. Remington can ride his bike and scooter. Remington’s dad and sisters, Alice and Emily, visit on weekends and school breaks.

“If you ask my daughters, their favorite thing is when people come in and bake. They always grab the brownies,” Winona says with a laugh.

The family is hopeful Remington can return home after his second round of immunotherapy and the start of a maintenance treatment plan later this year. Until then, Ronald McDonald House remains their safe haven, their home-away-from-home – and a safe place for Remington to play.