OXFORD – Fishing, camping and spending time outdoors aren’t things that Adrian Guevara gets to do at home. Thanks to a local family, the 10 year-old Brooklyn youth had the opportunity to enjoy all of these things this summer.
As a part of the Fresh Air Fund Friendly Town program, Guevara spent 10 days with the Follett family at their home outside of Oxford. This is the second year Gary and Sandy Follett and their son Devin have hosted the young boy.
Participating in the program is about a change of routine for children like Adrian. “It’s not about taking them to amusement parks or anything, it’s the change of environment that is important,” said host dad Gary Follett.
One of the family’s favorite activities with Adrian is fishing “We try to go a couple of times during Adrian’s visit,” said host mom Sandy Follett.
Adrian was hooked on the outdoor activity after he caught his first fish last summer. The group has fished at various locations in and around the county, but Adrian’s favorite fishing hole is a friend’s camp at Chenango Lake.
This year’s visit also included swimming, blackberry picking, camping out and a trip to the Chenango County Fair. “We went on a lot of rides,” said Adrian, whose favorite was the Gravitron.
The hardest part of the experience for Adrian is being away from his mom, but talking to her every day makes it easier.
Adrian admits that his friends are a little jealous when he goes home and tells them of his summer exploits. “They don’t get out of the city much,” said the boy.
For the last two years, the Follett family has hosted two boys for separate visits. Emmanuel Fischer, age 12, spent two weeks at their home earlier this summer.
Participating in the program has been a positive experience for the entire family, including the Follett’s teenage son. Seventeen year-old Devin, an only child, likes having the chance to play older brother. “It’s pretty cool actually,” Follett said. “I like being able to have someone to hang out with.”
“It’s pretty boring after (Adrian and Emmanuel) leave,” added the teenager. Sandy Follett agreed, “The first couple of days are hard.”
Communication doesn’t stop when Guevara goes back home. The Folletts keep in touch all year with frequent phone calls, birthday cards and even Christmas presents.
When Adrian goes home after his stay with the Folletts, he misses another member of their household as well: The family dog, Maggie May.
In fact, the boxer/lab mix is responsible for the family getting involved with the Fresh Air Fund in the first place. The Folletts were looking for a new puppy when they answered a classified ad two years ago.
The ad brought them to the home of Helen Regenbogen, chair of the Bainbridge area Fresh Air program. They left that day with information on the program and the puppy.
When Regenbogen visited their home a few weeks later to check on the puppy, she asked Sandy Follett if she would be interested in becoming the program’s Chenango County chair. The rest, as they say, is history.

Host families needed
“We are always looking for host families,” said Sandy Follett. This year the New York City-based program had to add a third summer session to accommodate all of the children interested in participating and the need for new host families is even greater.
According to Follett, there are some misconceptions about the program that she feels discourage families from participating.
Some families worry that hosting a child requires a large financial investment. This isn’t the case, reports the local chair. “You just have to feed one more mouth,” said Follett.
As for activities for the city kids, she recommends doing things they’d normally do with their own children. “You don’t have to do anything extravagant,” Follett said. “It is the simple things that they don’t get to do at home.”
It takes a few weeks to be approved as a host family, according to Follett. The first step in the process is to complete an application form and interview with Follett. This takes about an hour and requires the family to sign an authorization for a background check and provide references.
During this process, the family has the opportunity to specify the age and gender of the child they would like to host. “If you have children of your own, match them up by age,” recommends Follett’s husband Gary.
After the interview, Sandy Follett completes a safety/security checklist which involves a tour of the family’s home. “I look at where the child will be sleeping, play areas, etc.,” said Follett.
Once the home visit is complete, Follett contacts the family’s references before forwarding the paperwork on to the Fresh Air Fund headquarters in New York City.
Follett uses her own family’s experience as a Fresh Air host to help first-timers.
Once they are assigned a child, she encourages them to contact the child’s parents as soon as possible. “Most parents feel more comfortable when they get to know the host family before they send their child,” reported Sandy Follett.
“Usually the visit goes quite well and most families enjoy having that same child back,” stated Follett. The annual visits and continued communication help build life-long relationships between the children and their host families.
For more information on the Fresh Air Fund Friendly Town Program or to express an interest in becoming a host family, contact Sandy Follett at 336-1922 or visit the Fresh Air Fund website at www.freshair.org.