Twenty smiling New York City children boarded buses on Saturday, July 11th, headed for the Southwest Coast, to reunite with their host families at the bus arrival in Fairfield. This summer, close to 4,000 children will enjoy a summer outside of the city with volunteer host families in suburban, rural and small town communities across 13 states from Virginia to Maine and Canada through The Fresh Air Fund’s Volunteer Host Family Program.
“I’m excited to go swimming and to watch the stars at night. I can’t see them at night in the city!” explains ten-year-old Tyrone about his Fresh Air experiences. Many volunteer families find their hosting experience so rewarding that over 65 percent of all children are reinvited to stay with the same host families, year after year.
**Photo caption: New York City children began their Fresh Air summers on Saturday, July 11th by boarding the bus headed for the Southwest Coast area. The children will be visiting local host families for one or two weeks. Photo credit: Maggie Hanson