Yolanda Renteria spent a lot of time at the hospital when she was growing up.

Her grandfather often became ill and had to receive treatment. Because her parents, Jose and Esther Renteria, worked the overnight shift at their jobs, she often slept in the waiting room while her grandmother sat with her grandfather.

"I grew up at the hospital," said Yolanda, 26.

That experience - and a family tradition of helping others - encouraged her to find a way to help the Iowa City Ronald McDonald House, which provides housing and services for families who have children receiving treatment at University Hospitals. Renteria said she knew a family who had stayed at the Ronald McDonald House and learned how it was arranged.

"I thought it was like a hotel," she said of her initial perception.

Deciding to help in 2003, she asked businesses in her hometown of West Liberty and in Lone Tree, where she works as a receptionist at Lone Tree Family Practice, to donate items such as cake mixes, " toothbrushes and toilet paper. She decided to orient her collection around Valentine's Day.

"I like Valentine's Day," Renteria said. "It's my favorite holiday. I guess it's the holiday of love and caring."

The response, she said, has been overwhelming, with the collection at first filling her little red car. This year, she had to borrow her father's Chevy Suburban to pick up all of the donations.

"They're very generous," she said of the businesses that donated. "There's not a business that doesn't want to give to the cause. They usually never say no."

Renteria said her parents and grandparents stressed the importance of helping out in the community. Her aunt, Eustolia Partida, offers translation services and information for new families in West Liberty, while her mother helps with the children's reading program at the West Liberty Public Library.

"They always stressed that people need help and it doesn't always have to be financial," Renteria said. "Information and nurturing can be some of the best help you can give somebody."

- Rob Daniel