BRATTLEBORO — On a recent bright and unseasonably cool July day, seven families gathered in the parking lot in front of Brattleboro Union High School.
These were this summer's local hosts for The Fresh Air Fund Volunteer Host Family Program. Started in 1877, this program was designed to shuttle children from New York City to waiting homes in rural locations to give them a taste of life outside the boroughs.
These families, like many before them, said they were excited to welcome young visitors into their homes to spend a week to a month in Vermont.
Tom Kosiba, The Fresh Air Fund's volunteer Windham County coordinator, was waiting with the families to greet a bus with seven children arriving here from New York. Kosiba himself was a host parent for three years.
Kosiba explained that this program benefits children aged 6 to 18. Many of them return to the same host families year after year.
Among those waiting for the bus - and a girl named Lea - was host Debra Reed, a retired special educator who has greeted Lea for the past six years, since the young lady was 7.
Reed's family has a history of hosting children as part of the fund. Reed's parents hosted, as did one of her grandmothers. Starting when she was single, she did not know then that single-parent households could host children. Indeed they can, she said she learned.
Reed says she hosts Lea for a month, in contrast to the week many new host families have signed on for.
She says that although the point is to make a positive change in the young guest's life, it happens that in her case, Lea has had an incredible effect on her life as well. When Lea is at home, she and Reed stay in touch - first by phone, and now through email.
Reed reports Lea says coming up to stay with her is her favorite time of year, and that she even wants to attend college in Vermont.
Josh Rourke, a father who brought his two sons with him to wait for their guest, Rahman, learned of the Fresh Air Fund from a client. A former Manhattanite, he said he joined the program to give his kids an idea of how children live in locales beyond Vermont.
Rahman lives in the Bronx.
Rick Mills of Dummerston said he learned of the program through a speaker at Dummerston Congregational Church. The parents of his wife, Jeannette, also had experience hosting Fresh Air kids.
Their guest, Rachel, comes from Brooklyn. At 11, she's the same age as their eldest daughter. They had originally put in for a guest aged 7, but amended the request two weeks ago - and got a match in two days.
Kosiba explains the process by which children and host families are assigned: Hosts get to request an age and gender, then it's up to the children who match that, if there are any, to choose the host. Families are vetted in an interview, the children are given profiles of available families, and they pick which one most interests them.
After the pick has been made, the hosts contact the children and their parents, often by telephone, and learn a bit about the child before they come up.
Rick and Jeannette Mills know that Rachel likes art and swimming. They emailed her pictures of their house and family. It was a good fit all around.
While waiting for the bus, which was somewhat behind schedule, families rested on tree-shaded grass to chat. A cool breeze blew, and the air was charged with anticipation. A few hosts recognized each other as neighbors, and caught up.
Several families waiting told a Commons reporter that the Fresh Air Fund might better advertise the program so that more potential host families would learn about it. The consensus was that families here wanted to see more host families step up to make a difference in young urban lives.
According to Kosiba, the Windham County program used to draw more than 30 host families, and those numbers have fallen off in recent years.
The bus rolled in at around 2:30 p.m., nearly an hour later than expected, and excitement was high. Host families were brought over one by one and introduced to their guests as they disembarked. There were hugs all around, even between the guests and the local kids who, for a week or more, would be their playmates, guides, and stand-in “siblings.”
According to Kosiba, many of the kids in the program hail from lower-income families for whom extended stays in Vermont aren't typically possible. The Fresh Fund Fund offers these kids a chance to get outside, run around in the country, take in small-town life, and feel their way into a new part of their world.
And it offers host families the chance to make a difference in someone else's life - and their own.