Ready. Set. Rio!

Written by ls2group

LS2group takes on McDonald’s Olympics Kids Program in Kansas City.

Have you ever had the surprise of a lifetime? One remarkable girl from greater Kansas City can officially say, “Yes!” LS2group had the pleasure of planning and executing her special surprise party this past month.

Last week, McDonald’s and Ronald McDonald House Charities rewarded 12-year-old Hana Allen of Pleasant Hill, Mo. with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to attend the 2016 Rio Olympic Games. Hana is one of eight children from the United States chosen to participate in the global McDonald’s Olympics Kids Program, which will bring nearly 100 children ages eight to 12 years old from around the world to Rio de Janeiro to participate in the Opening Ceremony of the 2016 Olympic Games. The United States’ eight deserving children (four friendship duos) served by Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) have developed deep bonds from their shared experiences with RMHC across the country.

It was up to our team to plan an event where the big news would be revealed to Hana for the very first time, and we wanted to make it a moment she would remember for the rest of her life.

We enlisted the help of Hana’s mother, Heather Allen, and the RMHC team in Greater Cincinnati, where Hana has spent a significant amount of time during treatment, to learn more about this special girl. Hana was adopted from China at 16-months-old, and she has been diagnosed with a rare genetic condition called VACTERL association. She has spent time in and out of major surgeries and several RMHC houses around the country throughout her life. Her medical issues require significant time and attention every day, but regarding the impact on Hana’s spirit, Heather explained it best:

“None of this, though, adversely affects Hana’s daily life. She is a normal 12-year-old doing what every other child her age does. She runs, hikes, rides bikes, jumps on the trampoline, rides horses, swam on the swim team, and will be going to camp this summer. Hana is also smart, loves spelling, reading and math, has a witty sense of humor, and is mature beyond her years. She has been through a lot in her life, probably more than many adults, but she never stops smiling and never complains.”

LS2group had to knock this one out of the park, and only had a few weeks to pull it off. With the help of McDonald’s U.S.A., McDonald’s Heartland region, the McDonald’s Heart of America Co-Op, RMHC teams in Kansas City and Greater Cincinnati, the Allen family, a few special people in Hana’s life, a local Olympian, and a couple elite athletes, we were able to achieve a surprise of a lifetime.

Logistics

We worked closely with the aforementioned teams to determine a date, time, and location for the surprise and to coordinate decorations, snacks, beverages, and personalized gifts for Hana. Coordinating the actual surprise was a unique challenge, as we wanted to ensure Hana arrived at the Ronald McDonald House in Kansas City without suspicion so she wouldn’t be tipped off until she watched a special reveal video. We even needed to determine her exact position in the room at the time of the surprise so media could catch the best angle, and where to hide the rest of her friends and family in the House before she arrived!

She was brought to the House with her mother and younger brother under the guise of volunteering and attending a party at the House for volunteers. We coordinated a short program with Heart of America Co-Op President and RMHC Kansas City Board Chair Jim Wagy and McDonald’s Heartland Region General Manager Scott Rockwell, who helped introduce the reveal video, then present Hana with going away gifts and two tickets to Rio after the video played.

Reveal Video

Our team wanted to make sure many of Hana’s biggest supporters and mentors were included in the surprise, even if they couldn’t be there in-person. We worked with Hana’s family to track down six important people from Hana’s life – including her doctor, nurses, RMHC Cincinnati team members, neighbors, and past teachers – to submit a video message about their love and admiration of Hana’s spirit and courage. LS2group’s marketing team combined the messages into one and helped ease into the Rio announcement, made by her two eldest siblings, near the end of the video. The last message came from a local Olympian who is excited to see Hana down in Rio. The video added a very genuine, emotional component to the afternoon. Watch it here! But grab some tissues first.

Local Influencers

We invited a number of local influencers to join us in surprising Hana, including U.S. archer and Rio Olympian Zach Garrett and aspiring Olympians Brenna Dowell (gymnastics) and Emma Reaney (swimming), both of whom just competed in Olympic trials. Each of the athletes gave Hana a special gift and wished her well on her adventure.

After inviting several local elected officials, Rep. Judy Morgan and Jackson County Supervisor Scott Burnett were able to attend the event to wish Hana well. Although State Senator Ed Emery and State Representative Rick Brattin were unable to attend, we worked with both offices to present Hana with sealed and framed courtesy resolutions, which were a big hit.

Capturing Content           

We worked with our LS2group marketing team to capture the surprise on video, shooting angles from in front of and behind Hana while the reveal video played, as well as take photos at the event. This content was shared with the national McDonald’s team, and used to help further the story with media, influencers, on social media channels, and with the Allen family following the event.

Media

Our team developed a media advisory and press release for the event. We then pitched and secured attendance from several Kansas City media outlets at the event, including the Kansas City Star and all four local broadcast affiliates. That day and the next, we saw a swarm of great coverage roll in. In addition to pitching and securing local coverage, our team pitched and secured coverage in Cincinnati, Ohio, and Albuquerque, N.M. because of Hana’s connections to each market.

Check out the Star’s story here and our local NBC story here. Seriously, grab the tissues.

Extending the story

Our team is working closely with our McDonald’s partners and Hana’s family to keep Hana’s amazing story alive with area media outlets and on social media. We created a special hashtag – #HanaTakesRio – and encouraged attendees to use it whenever posting about Hana’s trip. This way, anyone can follow Hana on her exciting journey to the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio. Find updates via Twitter on @KCMcDonalds and on Facebook with Ronald McDonald House Charities of Kansas City.

We also worked with the team at Hana’s local McDonald’s to put together little sendoff party, complete with cake and a special FaceTime session with Hana’s Olympics Kids counterpart, nine-year-old Darius from New Jersey, the week after the big reveal.

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Even though it was a lot of work to pull off this event in such a short amount of time, it didn’t really feel like work. We had the opportunity to work with many amazing people and organizations to pull together a group of individuals committed to and excited about rewarding a young girl who had touched their lives with her story and her spirit. It was emotional, exciting, and extremely rewarding. And even though the special day has come and gone, we’re still lovin’ it!