It’s called the Fresh Air Fund.
“THE FRESH AIR FUND, an independent, not-for-profit agency, has provided free summer vacations to more than 1.7 million New York City children from low-income communities since 1877. Nearly 10,000 New York City children enjoy free Fresh Air Fund programs annually. In 2010, close to 5,000 children visited volunteer host families in suburbs and small town communities across 13 states from Virginia to Maine and Canada. 3,000 children also attended five Fresh Air camps on a 2,300-acre site in Fishkill, New York. The Fund’s year-round camping program serves an additional 2,000 young people each year.”
The Fresh Air Fund is currently looking for 850 more host families for kids to stay with this summer. The children stay in your home for two weeks at the most, and you help them to have experiences that they probably wouldn’t ever have growing up in the inner city.
These are the areas where they are looking for host families. Is this you? Interested? Check it out!
I grew up in the inner city. And this program makes me a wee bit uncomfortable. I mean, it seems founded on the premise of "inner city=bad childhood" "country/suburbs=good childhood" and considering when it was founded that probably was a least the initial intention. Frankly, I think I got lots of experiences growing up where I did that people from "free air" places might benefit from. I know that this program has its heart in the place but there are some modes of discourse here I just don't like.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure that the message is that suburban life is better, just different. They are targeting kids who are very low income, and surrounded by crime, drugs, etc. in order to give them a different experience than they will ever have where they are, and they are free so that children who come from low income homes can afford it.
ReplyDeleteAny family tries to give their kids a wide array of experiences in childhood, and this just makes it possible for those who can't afford it.
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