Fresh Air summers are filled with children running through the sprinklers in the grass, gazing at star-filled skies and swimming for the first time. This summer, join volunteer host families in the Rochester area and open your heart and home to a Fresh Air child. Each summer, thousands of children from New York City’s low-income communities visit suburban, rural and small town communities along the East Coast and Southern Canada through The Fresh Air Fund’s Friendly Towns Program.
Madisen, age 11, has visited the MacKinnon family for the past two summers. Host mom Linda said, “Seeing the world through Madisen’s eyes and enthusiastic spirit has made our whole family appreciate what we have. On her visit, Madisen joined us in our daily summer activities. She tried lots of things for the first time that we often take for granted; this summer she learned how to play tennis, attended her first yoga class, fed the horses that live next door, and swam in the ocean for the first time. Madisen really reminds us of how special the simple things are.”
The Fresh Air Fund, an independent, not-for-profit agency, has provided free summer experiences to more than 1.8 million New York City children from low-income communities since 1877. Fresh Air children are boys and girls, from seven to 18-years-old, who live in New York City. Children who are reinvited by host families may continue with The Fresh Air Fund through age 18 and can enjoy extended trips.
For more information about hosting a Fresh Air child this summer, contact Kimberly Hawkins at 766-1322 or visit www.freshair.org.
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