The Groeb family travels from Florida to Ohio, more than 900 miles away, to receive specialized medical care for Caylan. In addition to leaving behind their home, they navigate surgeries, procedures and an uncertain medical journey.

But when Caylan and her mom, Constance, arrive at the Cleveland Ronald McDonald House, they have a place where they can settle in, find community and feel a little more at home.

“It really is an extension of your house,” Constance said. “It helps in so many ways.”

Caylan’s medical journey began long before her family started traveling to Cleveland. She experienced lung disease as a young child and started homeschool in kindergarten because of frequent hospitalizations.

She also experienced ongoing stomach pain and other gastrointestinal issues. At age seven, worsening symptoms led doctors to perform a colonoscopy, where they discovered more than 100 polyps. Further testing eventually led to a diagnosis of familial adenomatous polyposis, or FAP, a genetic condition that causes polyps to develop and carries a high risk of colorectal cancer.

By the time Caylan was eight, doctors had found more than 200 polyps, some of which were already precancerous. She underwent surgery to remove her large intestine.

This surgery was only the beginning.

Because FAP is caused by a genetic mutation, Caylan requires ongoing monitoring. She undergoes scopes, biopsies, scans and other procedures throughout the year. She experiences infections and complications that have resulted in additional surgeries.

For Constance, each procedure brings another period of waiting and uncertainty.

Caylan’s drawing inspired by the Ronald McDonald House.

“Every biopsy, you’re on your toes trying to figure out, okay, is it in the precancer stage again or is she good?” she said. “Every time they put her to sleep, it’s concerning.”

Caylan initially received treatment in Florida, but after repeated surgical complications and infections, her medical team recommended that the family seek another opinion.

Constance began researching their options and asked one important question: Where should they go for the best care?

The answer brought them to Cleveland.

“I did my research, and asked, ‘Who is the best?’ And they said Cleveland,” Constance recalled. “Then that’s where we’re going. We’re going to Cleveland.’”

The trip, however, comes with challenges of its own. Their family lives more than 900 miles away, and each visit means Constance must take time away from work while also managing the expenses that come with traveling for medical care.

At Ronald McDonald House, many of those everyday worries become a little lighter.

Constance can prepare meals that accommodate their food allergies. They can do laundry, rest and have a comfortable place to return to after long days of medical care.

But some of the most meaningful parts of their stays are harder to measure.

Caylan and Constance describe themselves as “social butterflies,” and over time, the House has become a place where they have built friendships with other families. Caylan has met other kids who understand pieces of her experience, including those who have feeding tubes or ostomies. When asked if she could describe the Ronald McDonald House in one word, she said “friends.”

While every family’s medical journey is different, there is an understanding among the people who find themselves here.

“We’re all here because we have someone sick or that is getting help,” Constance said. “You can just take a breather. You can relax, you can meet people, you can talk to people, you can cook your own meals. You make friends.”

Some of those friendships have continued long after a stay ends. Caylan still keeps in touch with friends she has met through Ronald McDonald House, calling and texting even when they are hundreds of miles apart.

For Constance, the House has also provided a place to experience the emotions she sometimes tries to shield from her daughter.

During one particularly difficult hospitalization, she could return to Ronald McDonald House and have a place to cry, regroup and connect with people who understood.

“It’s just nice to have caring people as well,” she said.

For families traveling hundreds of miles for their child’s care, having somewhere to stay can change everything.

Constance knows firsthand how different their trips to Cleveland would be without Ronald McDonald House.

“I don’t know how we would make it, to be honest,” she said.

More than 900 miles from home, Caylan and Constance have found a place where they can rest, connect and focus on what brought them to Cleveland in the first place: getting Caylan the care she needs.

And when they walk through the doors of Ronald McDonald House, they know they have a place to stay.