Share the beauty of your community with a Fresh Air child

Date: 6/7/2010

This summer, share the beauty of your community with an inner-city child while enjoying a vacation in your own backyard! Join thousands of volunteer host families throughout 13 North-eastern states and Canada as they open their hearts and homes to New York City children from underprivileged communities through the Fresh Air Fund's Volunteer Host Family program. In 2010, the fund celebrates its 134th summer of helping youngsters from New York City enjoy new experiences like swimming in a cool lake and catching fireflies.

"My family is very excited to welcome back our Fresh Air child for a third summer. We get to do all the things we love right here in our community, like swimming and hiking, but with an additional member of the family!" said one host parent. Imagine summertime without making s'mores, playing in the backyard or gazing at the stars. Since 1877, the Fresh Air Fund has provided more than 1.7 million inner-city children with the opportunity to enjoy these simple pleasures.

Fresh Air children on first-time visits to host families are six to 12 years old and stay for one to two weeks. In fact, it only takes two weeks of fresh air and simple, summertime fun to help change a child's life.

For more information on how you can make summer special for a Fresh Air child, contact Lorie Dixon at 567-1890 or the Fresh Air Fund at 800-367-0003. You can also learn more about the Volunteer Host Family program by visiting < href="http://www.freshair.org" target="new">www.freshair.org.