ROCHESTER, Minn. - It's a home away from home for families with children who are getting essential medical care. The Ronald McDonald House gives them a place to stay for free during a difficult and stressful time in their lives.

The Ronald Mcdonald House is getting a first-of-its-kind donation from a newly found organization called ExperiCorps.

"ExperiCorps is a nonprofit who brings together retirees, experienced technical people in this case, and partners them with real companies in the area, real projects for that company, for no pay. And at the end of milestones, at the end of checkpoints, or completion of projects, the real company, in this case, Preventice, makes a donation to a different nonprofit, in this case, the Ronald McDonald House," said Steve Dickes.

Dickes is a retired IBM software engineer who's now working on a project for Preventice. Preventice, through ExperiCorps, then makes a donation to the Ronald McDonald House. The $11,000 will go directly to help the families who are staying there.

"The funds that we received today will be used to support 70 families every night here at the house. Those funds go to keep the lights on, to keep the air conditioning running this time of year, to provide really basic necessities to families who are here focusing on the health of their child," said Ronald McDonald House Executive Director Peggy Elliott.