Family Opens Home To Summer Guest This Year

By Kendra Bobowick

Kim O’Rourke’s thoughts are on summer days by the pool, or walking along shaded trails.

She dreams of “sleeping in, swimming at Treadwell [Park], or choosing an ice cream shop,” she said. When the days are hot and humid, “We like being lazy!” Joining Kim and her husband Brendan and daughter Meghan, 9, will be Shye, 7, from New York City. She will be visiting through the Fresh Air Fund.

Since 1877, the organization “has been giving inner-city children the joy of a summer vacation with volunteer host families, creating unforgettable memories and fresh possibilities,” according to FreshAir.org.

“We’re looking to do simple things that we take for granted, but might be shocking to her,” Ms O’Rourke said. Thinking of the vistas and scenic hillsides at Fairfield Hills, she said, “We’ll see horses, go hiking, take bike rides…”

The O’Rourkes, who moved to Newtown several years ago, had read about the Fresh Air Fund in past years, but were reluctant to open their doors to a guest until Meghan was older. “I kept it in the back of my mind, and this year Meghan seemed welcoming and receptive.” She said her daughter was “looking forward to being a big sister and sharing the things she does in the summer with Shye.”

Welcoming a Fresh Air child will be “something new. We have not done this before,” said Ms O’Rourke. “I think it will be a lot of fun.”

Fresh Air Fund Executive Director Jenny Morgenthau “hopes people reach out and host” this year. “There are a lot of children signed up,” she said. “We need more hosts,” said Ms Morgenthau, explaining that budget cuts have hurt other Fresh Air programming.

Also, “It’s nice for the children to have a safe place to play, and not inside a hot apartment.”

Families such as the O’Rourkes of Newtown can “expect the unexpected” from their Fresh Air visitor. “People need to be flexible,” Ms Morgenthau noted. Children all have different sets of activities they like, she said, and different behaviors. The host family’s children especially need to make adjustments they also may not anticipate.

“Prepare your children that they have to share their room, their toys, and their mother!” she warned. And while almost everyone likes pizza, Ms Morgenthau explained that interests in dolls, swimming, or sports may differ.

She also offers advice about the guest children who want to call home: “Do it in the morning.” She said, “If a child wants to call home, don’t do it at night.” She said that children might cry, but morning calls are a “whole different flavor.”

The overall experience often makes the host family and their guest happy. “It’s fun and rewarding; so many [host] families feel they get more than they give,” she said.

 

Background

The Fresh Air website states, “Thanks to host families who open up their homes for a few weeks each summer, children growing up in New York City’s toughest neighborhoods have experienced the joys of Fresh Air experiences.”

The site also offers a brief comment about hosting a child: “Host families range in size and background, but share the desire to open their hearts and homes to give city children an experience they will never forget. Hosts say the Fresh Air experience is as enriching for their own families, as it is for the inner-city children. There are no financial requirements for hosting a child. Volunteers may request the age-group and gender of the Fresh Air youngster they would like to host.”

For more information, contact the Fresh Air Fund at 800-367-0003 or visit FreshAir.org.