‘I’m not used to a whole bunch of trees’
There are about 80 kids from NYC visiting Niagara and Haldimand County this summer, “from neighbourhoods that they refer to as underserved in the New York City community,” she says.
“That can mean medical, school, activities for kids. They are provided lower service” than other parts of the city.
Most are returnees. Sometimes, host families invite Fresh Air kids in because they have their own children about the same age while others are empty nesters who just like to have kids in the house. They all undergo background checks.
When it’s a good match, which Lucas says it usually is, kids and families can be reunited year after year.
“That’s why families host,” she says. “You’re giving a child an experience. You’re opening your home and your heart.
“It doesn’t cost you anything, you just have to feed them.”
Her job is to watch over the volunteers who recruit host families and act as a 24-7 resource while the kids are visiting.
The best way to apply to be a host is through the website, FreshAir.org.
Most years, Lucas has also been a host and said her own children “grew up not knowing a summer without Fresh Air … it taught my kids so much.”
She said when talking to new host families, “I tell them don’t overdo it.
“The kids aren’t looking for these huge activities. It’s basically the bonding with the family, making new friends and having fun.”
One big family
The first step can be a little worrisome, says Sherry Reid.
“You’re always scared at first, whether it’s going to work for your kids and for them, too,” says Reid, whose St. Catharines family is hosting Martinez, the teen from the Bronx, this month.
“When Jessica came to us she was eight years old, so we were wondering, is this going to be a fit?”
It was good for all of them — Reid and her husband, Jason, their daughters Jessica, 18, and Alicia, 16, and for Martinez, who has come back every summer for nearly 10 years now.
Her daughters and Martinez “have a great relationship,” Reid says.
Adds Martinez: “Basically I’m their big sister, even though they’re all bigger than me.”
She comes to Niagara every summer; when Jessica Reid’s basketball team has a game in New York during the winter, Martinez goes to watch.
“She says just being able to relax and not have to worry about anything during the day is a vacation for her,” says Sherry Reid.
“She is like a part of our family.”
She adds: “It’s a great experience, not only for that child — it’s life-changing for that child, but it’s a great experience also for your own family.”
She said the first year Martinez came, her neighbourhood had the highest murder rate in New York City.
“New York is just a completely different environment from Niagara Falls and St. Catharines,” says Martinez.
“It’s just overwhelming to be up here. The difference in the kids and the way people act, the cleanliness …
“We’re all a community in the Bronx, we all know each other … we all grew up together.”
This is the final year she will qualify for the program, though, as Fresh Air kids age-out after 18. The Reids plan to send Martinez bus fare or a plane ticket so she can return anyway.
She remembers her first year as a Fresh Air kid.
She was just eight years old when she got on a bus with other children and made the 675-kilometre trip to Niagara.
“I was crying for my mom for days,” she says. “But as I got used to it, I realized the family just wanted to love me.
“They accepted me and I accepted that and just put myself in the family. And now we’re all a big family.”