The Fresh Air Fund

05/12/11 | by admin | Reviews | No Comments »-->

Have you ever heard of the Fresh Air Fund?

I learned about the Fresh Air Fund about 15 years ago, when I owned my day spa. One of my loyal clients one day brought in another woman for services. When I asked how the two women knew each other, they gave one another a look between themselves and then my client started the story. By the way, the ladies both have the same first name,Arlene. Arlene J and Arlene W.

Arlene J and her brother grew up in NYC. Their father was a restaurant owner/chef… and how it came to be that her parents had the children participate in The Fresh air Fund I do not know but that was how Arlene J and Arlene W came to know each other.

Arlene W and her husband were the  HOST family that took  Arlene J in for that summer,and if my memory is correct for a few more summers after that.

I am not well versed in all the opportunities that are provide by the Fresh Air Fund  so let take a look at their website: www.freshair.org

Our History

In 1877, The Fresh Air Fund, an independent not-for-profit organization, was created with one simple mission — to allow children living in disadvantaged communities to get away from hot, noisy city streets and enjoy free summer experiences in the country.

When The Fund began, New York City was overflowing with poor children living in crowded tenements. Many of these youngsters were hit by a tuberculosis epidemic, and “fresh air” was considered a cure for respiratory ailments. More than 130 years ago, the Reverend Willard Parsons, a minister of a small, rural parish in Sherman, Pennsylvania, asked members of his congregation to provide country vacations as volunteer host families for New York City’s neediest children. This was the beginning of The Fresh Air Fund. By 1881, the work of The Fund was expanding so rapidly that Reverend Parsons asked for and secured support from The New York Tribune. By 1888, The Fund was incorporated as “The Tribune Fresh Air Fund Aid Society.” Today, Fresh Air continues to benefit from the support of the media with invaluable assistance from The New York Times.

The Fund’s tradition of caring provides children with a much-needed respite from the inner-city streets. Thousands of youngsters enjoy summer experiences with volunteer hosts or attend one of five Fund camps in upstate New York.

The simplicity of our program is its strength. Looking back to 1877, we can reflect on how much has changed, and how much has stayed the same. The Fund began with a small group of youngsters heading for the country and went on to benefit more than 1.7 million needy children.

I must back up, I did know that her parents wanted to get their children out of the city and to the country for some fresh air. Now, we all know how it began and what they provided to the city kids during the summers.~~~~~~

I did not grow up in the city.I was a child in a Connecticut town, not a city and not the country,but the benefits of country life. Today, I do live in the city and love it, but I also feel lucky to have my “country” home to go back to because honestly,living in the city one needs to get away and I truly believe that I would not like living in this city if I did not have my  Connecticut home  to go back to and my Connecticut is not Fairfield County its New London County.

I feel The Fresh Air Fund, provides a great service for the inner city kids, then and today. Let’s go and look around the website some more.

I think what Arlen J and Arlene W were a part of is this: The Friendly Town Program

The Spring Fling 2011: A fund raiser for The Fresh Air Fund:The 2010 Spring Fling

Looking over their website ,I am learning more about the Fresh Air Fund and I am seeing a few fund raisers coming up, starting in June with the Spring Benefit. To be hled at Chelsea Piers here in NYC on Thursday June 2,2011.

The 2011 Spring Benefit Hosted by Ann Curry from NBC’S Today Show  Honoring Tommy Hilfiger & Olivia Wilde

There was a Half Marathon that was run in March.

I see that the registration for summer 2011 is still open: Sign Up Your Child for Free Fresh Air Summer Programs

 

Volunteer Outside of NYC  or  Volunteer in NYC :Volunteer in New York City or a Friendly Town – The Fresh Air Fund

 

DONATE here: Fresh Air Fund > Donate If you can not donate, maybe you can be a Host family in your town: Host a New York City child to provide a Fresh Air vacation

I was asked by Sarah, who works for the Fresh Air Fund to write about this organization on my blog, to help spread the word about The Fresh Air Fund, please feel free to take this posting and re post it on your blogs too. Sarah and I Thank-you for spreading the word.

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