Our annual Host Family Day was a hit! We joined in the festivities at the American Indian Heritage Day at Jefferson Patterson Park and Museum.
Au pairs from Germany, Jamaica, Namibia, Panama and Poland attended, many along with their host families!
Activities included bead making from clay and shells, grinding corn, preparing venison stew, traditional dances, decorating faces, corn husk doll making, archery and so much more!
We stopped by Sonic drive in for an American experience! Rootbeer floats and corn dogs! We also played games and worked on our Sending Smiles community service project! A poll of the au pairs found that 5 of them found the corn dogs yummy while 2 found them to be strange! On of our au pairs, from Jamaica, said they were, “Mmmmm, mmmmm, good!” We had four positive votes for the rootbeer floats! This week the au pairs hailed from Peru, Germany, Namibia, Jamaica and Poland!
Saying goodbye is truly the hardest part of summer! Over the year (or more) I forge strong relationships with the au pairs in my group! I try to meet one on one or in small groups with everyone before they leave to talk about their experiences, plans moving forward as the return home and how to take the skills and experiences from America and transfer them to their future! Here are a few stories of some of the young women heading home this summer!
I met up with Solymar and Kenia (both from Panama) recently. Solymar is finishing her year in just a few weeks and Kenia is just a few months into hers. We talked about the impact of our program and the American experience as well as discussed transitioning home and how the skills developed in their time here relate to their lives and careers back home in Panama. It has been lovely having both of them in my cluster and watching them become friends!
I had the pleasure of meeting with one of my German au pairs, Nadine, who is finishing up her 21 month stay in the US in just a few weeks.
We had the opportunity to discuss her experiences here in Maryland and with her first year family in Georgia, how her skills developed and used here relate to her employment as she returns home, how much she has grown through this time, etc. We even brainstormed a few more things to experience before her time in the US is over.
Saying goodbye to Lisa and Lina, both from Germany, as they complete their year in Southern Maryland this month! We had a great visit discussing the impact the Au Pair in America program had on them and how it helped shape their plans for the future. Both young women had many wonderful things to say about their experiences as we chatted.
I gave them a list of 52 things they might have done during their year here, from trying Maryland blue crabs or root beer floats, to seeing a baseball or football game, to visiting amazing cities such as New York or Chicago. It was rewarding to see them cross off so many things and add to the list with their own unique experiences! They brought me lovely flowers as a parting gift! I will miss their infectious smiles and laughter, but I look forward to seeing what their new adventures bring!
This past weekend we braved the heatwave and experienced the Ladybugs Alive Sunflower Gardens and Maze in Chaptico! Such a beautiful experience! The sunflowers were amazing, the maze was challenging, but not too hard, the staff was wonderfully friendly! We can’t wait to visit again next summer!
This month we met at the Sweet Frog in Charlotte Hall for a sweet treat and some community service fun! We continue our partnership with Sending Smiles, a local charity that sends postcards to sick and injured children across the country! To date, they have distributed over 30,000 postcards to cheer up these sweet children! This is our third year partnering with them!
This past weekend several clusters with Au Pair in America met in DC for a tour of the United States Capitol. This building is the most widely recognized symbol of democratic government in the world. It has housed Congress since 1800. The Capitol is where Congress meets to write the laws of our nation and where Presidents are inaugurated and deliver their State of the Union messages.
This was very exciting day for several hundred au pairs in our region as we received a very informative tour by our tour guide! Thanks to everyone that participated!
Anna, 20, from Germany, is in her second year as an au pair in Dunkirk, MD. She regularly volunteers her time to support the local volunteer rescue squad. Anna spent many hours training to prepare her to ride in a rescue squad as a support person. Her community service is quite valuable, as the Southern Maryland region is almost exclusively volunteer staffed for fire and rescue. Anna also volunteers in other ways to support the department, such as community events, fundraisers and general support. Anna’s volunteer service has provided her the opportunity to gain new skills, help others and build friendships with American citizens from teens to seniors!
This past weekend we gathered to have a classic American 50’s style diner experience! While we enjoyed the unique decor and the heavy presence of Elvis, we ordered sundaes and milkshakes and got down to creating art for our community service project! Each year we dedicate some of our time to doing something that benefits the local community.
New to us this year is the Kindness Rock movement! What is the Kindness Rocks Project? Goal #1: Inspire others through randomly placed rocks along the way. Goal #2: Recruit every person who stumbles upon it to join in the pursuit of inspiring others through random acts of kindness. Rocks bring happiness, meaning, comfort, etc to their recipients. Mostly, they bring a sense that they matter, they they are loved. By participating in this project, the au pairs are expressing their creative side, joining in an activity that fosters happiness, lending support, and brings people outside and connecting.
Our au pairs created special country flag rocks along with artistic, supportive and happy rocks. Each au pair left the gathering with finished rocks to hide somewhere in their specific community. As we were preparing to depart from Bert’s Diner, we spotted a Kindness Rock sitting outside. We picked it up, napped a picture and placed it back for someone else to find and share a smile! Our au pairs know all too well how important a random kindness can be, how much a smile can change a day. #fearlessglobalcitizen
This year, we are continuing to support Sending Smiles. Sending Smiles is a local 501C3 charity started by local sisters and their cousins! Their mission is to send messages of hope to sick children and their families. We want to help those who are battling cancer, sickness, or other conditions to SMILE by sending them crazy fun postcards!! To date they have sent over 25,000 postcards to children and families across the United States. You can check out the amazing work Sending Smiles does by visiting their Facebook page – https://www.facebook.com/SistersSendingSmiles/
When your au pairs ask to go to a haunted house or something similar, you put aside your fears and go, right? Some brave young women from Germany and South Africa joined me for a scary evening at the dark, cold fairgrounds. We headed towards our doom, er, walked to the starting point, listening to the screams in the dark near us….
“The haunted house was amazing. It was scary and funny at the time and I was happy I had my friends with me!” – German au pair
“It scared me more than I thought it would!!” – South African au pair
“The haunted trail was a clownie-creepy experience everyone should have!” – German au pair
“The haunted trail was an amazing experience for me. I was very scared sometimes and I never did this before. So I was happy that I did it with the group and now I can tick one more thing off my American bucket list.” – German au pair
Photos: Colin Chan
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Au pairs in Southern Maryland gathered at the Forrest Hall Farm and Orchard on a picture perfect Saturday afternoon! We grabbed a bunch of apples to sample!
Everyone enjoyed taking some silly pictures!
Corn maze, hay ride, corn hole and picking out our pumpkins!
