A couple weeks ago, Melinda Barnes called Atlanta Ronald McDonald House Charities to say she had lots of pop tabs from Priest Family recycling, a recycler in Ellijay, which did not recycle them. Could we help?

All in all, there were 11 drums full of pop tabs that were taken to Scrappy’s Recylcing, the recycling center where all of our pop tabs go. In total, Melinda donated 1,056 pounds of pop tabs, 8 pounds of recyclable lead and 45 pounds of aluminum sheets for a total $406.65 to benefit our families.

When asked what prompted Melinda to reach out, she said her nephew needed medical care at Egleston in 2012. While her nephew was getting treatment, her parents and sister stayed at our Ronald McDonald House near Egleston for a couple of weeks. “I wanted to give back,” Melinda said.

Melinda plans to donate some of the pop tabs to the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Cincinnati where a close friend whose child is receiving treatment for a debilitating disease stays every six to eight weeks.