Reba McEntire has spent years using her wealth to give back to the community through different initiatives and philanthropic campaigns. Around the 1980s, she changed the landscape for North Texas after finding out that many families who accompany their family members to hospitals have to stay in the cold and hard visitor’s seats with nowhere to go. She built a ranch that operated as a guest house for families whose loved ones were admitted to nearby hospitals.Read ahead to know more about Reba’s Ranch House in Denison, Texas.
In 1992, Reba McEntire built a ranch guest house for people in need
According to the ranch house’s official website, the idea first started when McEntire traveled to Denison to meet with Dr. Darius Maggi. The doctor often cared for many people in the community there, along with her sisters and many of her nieces and nephews who lived in the area. Reba McEntire herself grew up in southeastern Oklahoma and saw that people were suffering a lot while visiting their loved ones in the hospital.
When Reba travelled to Denison, she met with her physician, who told her that a lot of families who visit regional hospitals to get their loved ones treatment, often times they have to sleep outside, on cold chairs ot in their cars. (Instagram)
During one of her visits, Dr. Maggi shared with McEntire about how families visiting regional hospitals were often exhausted and sleeping in waiting rooms or cars since they had no place to go. The star was inspired to help in any way possible, and she first started raising awareness and money by holding concerts and events like golf tournaments, parades, and fishing tournaments.
More about Reba McEntire’s home in Denison, Texas
Taking a step further in how she could help these families, McEntire started the Reba’s Ranch House, a space where family members of patients admitted to regional hospitals could go and stay, get some food, and have a place to rest at no cost. The property is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, and has 12 private guest rooms. All of the rooms are outfitted with handmade quilts, and the main residence has a communal kitchen, dining areas, laundry facilities, a children’s playroom, landscaped gardens, and quiet prayer/meditation areas. Community volunteer groups often help with the food and other facilities at the space to ensure that everyone gets a warm meal.Another special feature of the house is the ‘Room of Hope,’ specially made for cancer patients and their families, which supplies cancer patients and family members with wigs, prosthetics, scarves, hats, and comfort items free of charge.The website also reported that the space has helped 35,000+ families so far since its inception back in the 1990s. Anyone traveling across North Texas and South Oklahoma to visit hospitals is welcome at the ranch.
Who is Reba McEntire?
Reba McEntire was born on March 28, 1955, in McAlester, Oklahoma, and is a well-known singer, actress, and songwriter who has sold over 75 million records worldwide. Known as the queen of country music, McEntire has been working in the entertainment industry for years now and started her career when she released her self-titled debut studio album, ‘Reba McEntire,’ on August 15, 1977. Over the course of her career, McEntire has released over 140 singles and around 500 total recorded songs and has also featured in a lot of TV shows and films.
