BRATTLEBORO — Nineteen smiling New York City children boarded buses on July 8, headed for Southeastern Vermont, to reunite with their host families at the Fresh Air Fund bus drop-off point at Brattleboro Union High School.
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.
The Walkowiak family of Whitingham, at the bus arrival last week, has hosted Lynai Castillo-Watson from the Bronx for the past 10 summers. She was six years old when she first came to Vermont.
Now closing in on 18 years old, Lynai has become a lifelong friend to the Walkowiak girls.
“I'm excited to go swimming and to watch the stars at night. I can't see them at night in the city!” said 10-year-old Tyrone about his Fresh Air experiences.
According to the Fresh Air Fund, many volunteer families find their hosting experience so rewarding that more than 65 percent of all children are invited to stay with the same host families year after year.