More Photos (1):

Administrative & Professional
Tucson Urban League
CEO/President Finance and Accounting
Charles E. Gillman Company
Accounting Specialist Administrative & Professional
Jorgensen Brooks Group
Counselor Sales and Marketing
Everready Glass
Sales Reps Trades/Construction
RANCHO RESORT
MAINTANANCE POSITION Mechanical
Komatsu Equipment Co
Resident Field Mechanic

Six-year-old Sarah Madden knows when she stays at the Ronald McDonald House in Madera, Calif., that her friend Riley will be there to play with her and keep her company.

And Riley is not hard to spot — just look for the friendly black, white and brown rat terrier.

He comes to work every day with his owner, Lacy Craig. She's a processing coordinator at the house for out-of-area families whose children are receiving medical care at local hospitals.

On a recent sunny day, Sarah is excited to see Riley in a courtyard area just outside Craig's office. The delighted pair chase each other. Riley plays his version of hide-and-seek. Sarah squeals as she calls his name and teases him with his toys.

"He likes me a lot because he jumps at me when I have his toy," she explains gleefully.

Riley started spending days at the Ronald McDonald House in the fall of 2005, shortly after Craig got him as an 8-week-old puppy. He was too young to leave at home by himself, so Craig received permission to bring him to work. She set up a bed and a food tray and brought in some pet toys. She thought at the time, "We'll just keep him here until he gets a little bit older."

But her view changed about a month into Riley's stays at the Ronald McDonald House. One day, he began playing with a 7-year-old girl who had just had a tumor removed from her brain. The girl was having difficulty moving the right side of her body. Craig, thinking Riley might get rowdy, offered to lead her dog away.

The girl's mother, however, told Craig it was all right. It would help her daughter physically to throw Riley his toys and chew stick. That's when Craig says she realized that Riley wasn't just passing time at the house.

"I just thought: 'He does have a purpose here,' " Craig says. "I'm just so happy that he's part of my life, but out here, it just seems everybody enjoys his company."

That includes staff at the house, children such as Sarah and adults such as her mother, Heather Madden.

While her daughter plays with Riley, Madden watches with a smile on her face. "Every time we come here, it's 'Where's Riley? Can I play with Riley?' " says Madden. "She loves him."

Mom makes regular 170-mile trips from Tehachapi in Kern County so that Sarah and her baby sister, 9-month-old Lillian, can see specialists near the Ronald McDonald House.

Sarah, for example, has an immune deficiency and receives regular intravenous immune globulin therapy. And that, Madden explains, is a slow-drip process that can take several hours. Having Riley around at the house helps.

"It takes some of the stress off of why she's here," Madden says. "She knows she's going to get poked with needles and stuff when she's here. . . . It makes the trip fun."

And what about Mom?

"To me, he gives me a break," Madden says. "She goes and plays with him, and I can sit and just watch."

After a day's work, Craig takes Riley home, where he usually crawls underneath the bed and goes to sleep. By morning, he's all primed for a new day at his second home.

"He sits by the front door," Craig says. "As soon as he sees me put my shoes on, he's ready to go."

Nikki Frago, family services coordinator at the Ronald McDonald House, says Riley's presence is a "great help." The house — one of more than 245 in 28 countries — offers a temporary home where family members can sleep, eat and find support from other families. Frago sees how much Riley means to the children, especially those who are receiving intensive medical treatment.

"It just makes me want to cry when I watch them," Frago says. "It just helps them so much to try to forget how sick they feel and how upset and scared they are. Yes, he's a great help."

But Frago also says it's heartening to see the delight the little dog brings.

"He makes them laugh," she says. "You see the joy, the absolute joy on their faces. I'm so glad Riley's here."