Newtown resident and Friendly Town Chairperson Marie Athans says The Fresh Air Fund is seeking more families to welcome inner city children to a summer vacation through the Fresh Air Fund this summer. With buses from New York City bringing the first group of children to Newtown and area towns as soon as the end of this month, she is still working to pair more children with local families for July and August. 

Households can be a single person to a large family. The process involves approximately a one-hour home visit with a tour of the home, an application with three references, and background checks for anyone 18 or older living in the home. The family can choose to host a boy or girl, ranging from 6 to 12 years old. All the information is confidential and goes to the NYC Fresh Air office where children are matched to a family. 

The child and family information is provided prior to the visit, and children arrive with their medical insurance information.

The vacation for the children does not require a large investment, according to the organization. The important aspect is that the family shares its suburban/rural home and gives the inner city child a week or two break from a sweltering apartment and hot city pavement he or she plays on. A summer day full of activities like rolling in the grass, hiking in the woods, picking wildflowers or catching fireflies and watching the stars is a whole new experience for many of the children. 

The Fresh Air Fund is a non-for-profit organization that enables these vacations by recruiting families to host a child in their home. Liability insurance is provided by the Fresh Air Fund.

Contact Ms Athans at 203-426-7137 or visit FreshAir.org for more information.