Author Archives: Victoria Paton

Au Pairs Learn About Fire Safety & Meeting Points

October 31, 2011 – 3:19 pm

APDC0008 resize Potomac Shoreline Cluster Au Pairs (Bethesda, Cabin John, Glen Echo and Potomac) on September 20th visited the Cabin John Firehouse #10 on River Road for a lesson in fire safety including: when to phone 911, importance of a family having a meeting point outside the house in the event of a fire, locating 2 exits from the home, what to do in a power outage, what to do in the event of flooding roads etc.

After the girls asked questions and learned a lot of new and useful safety tips, several au pairs were selected to put on the fire gear in 1 minute or less. That gear is HEAVY!!

Then au pairs were invited to explore the fire trucks and to take photos. That was a lot of fun!

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Victoria Finishes Bike Ride in Utah & Raises $5600 for Leukemia

October 31, 2011 – 1:41 pm

Victoria trained from May to October to do her first-ever 100 mile bike ride in Moab Desert, Utah – the “Moab Century” on 9/17/11.

Moab Team full frame Color Caption She was raising money for Leukemia & Lymphoma Society via Team in Training Cycling in memory of her dad and aunt who both died young form Leukemia. Victoria exceeded her Fundraining minimum of $3400 with donations from friends and family of $5600!!

Au Pairs Organize and Participate in a 5k Walk for Leukemia

October 31, 2011 – 1:26 pm

I was so surprised and happy when a few au pairs came to me saying they wanted to organize a 5k walk for my Leukemia & Lymphoma ride in Moab Desert on 9/17/11. With a registration fee of only $5, a group of dedicated South African au pairs arrived at Starbucks in Potomac Village, set up a table and mapped out the route with Au Pair in America signs. We had about 20 walkers who came out on a Sunday noon – Au Pairs and Host families and a dog! Each walker received a water bottle, a kit kat for energy and a purple Leukemia & Lymphoma bracelet. With the registration fees and passers-by giving donations they raised an amazing $175!!

Thank you so much! Desere IMG-20110925-00067

Au Pair in America and Potomac Pizza – Potomac join together to raise money for Leukemia

August 7, 2011 – 12:46 pm

Join Au Pairs, Host Families, friends and others who want to help raise money for Leukemia & Lymphoma Society on Wednesday, August 10th 4-9pm at Potomac Pizza – Potomac Village only – where 20% of all eat-in or carry-out orders go directly to Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

Potomac/Bethesda, Au Pair in America Community Counselor, Victoria Paton, is raising funds for Leukemia & Lymphoma by riding a 100 mile ride in Utah on September 17, 2011. She trains weekly (yesterday reaching her longest ever of 66 miles in Gettysburg, PA) and many Au Pairs said they want to help her raise money as their friends and family have also been affected by blood cancers. So we decided to eat some excellent American pizza and have a fun event also.

The event is open to the public, but Potomac Pizza requests that anyone wishing proceeds to go to Leukemia & Lymphoma Society print the attached flier or mention it at check-out.

Victoria replies to Host Family email on Blackberry at mile 34 rest stop near covered bridge

Print flier to take to Potomac Pizza http://potomac.patch.com/events/potomac-pizza-and-au-pair-in-america-fundraiswer-for-leukemia#pdf-7292310

Au Pairs Celebrate 4th by Walking 5k for Autism in Potomac

July 5, 2011 – 12:02 am

Michelle and Amy Au Pairs from S. Africa Walked 5k for Autism

Michelle and Amy, both Au Pairs with Au Pair in America, from South Africa joined thousands of others on the 4th of July to walk 5k for Autism Speaks in Potomac to raise money for Autism research. Michelle said that she loved to participate in charity walks back home and was excited by the chance to help an American non-profit with her energy. Many Au Pairs are trained to care for children with Special Needs.

Au Pair in America's Educare Program – perfect for families with school aged children

June 28, 2011 – 11:37 am

AU PAIR IN AMERICA & MONTGOMERY COLLEGE were the first ever Educare in America program in the United States. Educare companions work a maximum of 30 hours of childcare/week and a maximum of 10 hours/day – ideal for before and after school care.

We have an abundance of candidates: primarily from Germany and France available for immediate placement. www.aupairinamerica.com

August 15th arrival date still available!

December 5th arrival date still available!

EduCare Regulations:

EduCare is only for families that require childcare before and after school.
EduCare au pairs may not be placed with families that have preschool children except if other, full-time childcare plans have been made.
The EduCare au pair may work no more than 10 hours per day, and a maximum of 30 hours per week.
Au pairs participating in the EduCare component receive 75 percent of the weekly rate paid to non-EduCare participants.
EduCare au pairs must complete a minimum of 12 hours of academic credit or its equivalent during the program year.
The host family is required to provide (up to) the first $1,000 toward the cost of the au pair’s required academic course work.

Host Family Comparative Fees

Au Pair	Standard Au Pair	EduCare Companion
Program Fee	$7,295.00	$6,095.00
Match Fee	400.00	400.00
Weekly Stipend*	195.75	146.81
Education	500.00	1000.00
Average per week**	347.00	274.00

*Based on the Federal minimum wage

** Not including education allowance. Including education, difference is $3,196

EduCare in America 2011 Arrival Dates

Tuesday, July 5 Monday, July 25

Monday, August 1 Monday, August 15 – LAST AVAIL DATE FALL ’11

Monday, December 5

Host Family/Au Pair Picnic June 2010 – Fun before the storm!

June 13, 2010 – 3:57 pm

About 30 Host Families and Au Pairs attended the picnic at Great Seneca Park’s Doe Shelter. It was a hot and sunny day but the shelter provided some shade and we had lots of cool drinks. New Au Pairs made friends, old friends met again and host families and their children shared lunch, delicious desserts and the fun with each other.

Au Pairs from Latvia had put together a great table with great posters about their wonderful country and a computerized slide show. Ieva and Kerry both cooked for hours on the morning of the event to prepare Latvian food that everyone could try: soup, cake, etc. DELICIOUS! Thank you! We now have 2 Latvian au pairs with Alisa to arrive in July and Zane in August.

Children played on the playground, enjoyed face painting done by Imelda’s daughter and friend, participated in a raffle of Au Pair items, and lined up for balloon sculptures made for each child of an item of request (crown, heart, sword, bunny etc.) by our own Brazilian Au Pair, Bartira Frank. Thank you!!!

Then we all heard the thunder, but a park ranger came by and told us that we had about 15 minutes to pack up the fun as a big storm was on the way. We all hustled and packed up JUST in time! A big storm did follow, but we had had almost 2 hours of our wonderful picnic.

Zumba! Zumba! May 2010 Cluster Meeting was GREAT!

June 13, 2010 – 3:39 pm

What great music! Au Pairs can move! We all enjoyed a Zumba class at Fitness First in Gaithersburg/Darnestown, Maryland. Some of us stopped at the nearby Starbucks to grab a sip of caffeine to be ready for the dance class. Fitness First is offering a discounted rate at many of their area locations to Au Pairs. If you are interested let Imelda Farrell know as she has the contact information: ifarrell96@comcast.net. Thanks to the MANY au pairs who participated in this fun event!!!

Go Girls!! Our Cluster does really well!

The front row!!!

Imelda takes the floor!

Getting into the beat!

Au Pairs Collect Hygiene Products for Haiti

January 13, 2010 – 4:10 pm

At our cluster meeting on January 19th, many au pairs donated supplies to create hygiene packets for victims of the earthquake in Haiti.

Here are some photos of au pairs and the great number of donations.

Here is the link for the organization that is sending the packages to Haiti.

Fun Cluster Holiday Gathering December 2009

December 16, 2009 – 11:06 am

On Sunday December 13th, about 40 Au Pairs from our cluster joined Victoria and her family in their home for an evening of fun and Christmas spirit. Au Pairs basked in the glow of a roaring fire, constructed and decorated two gingerbread houses (which were raffled to two lucky winners to take home), enjoyed sweet and savory food favorites, decorated the Christmas tree, participated in a zany “left/right” gift exchange, won prizes in a raffle, and made new friends and enjoyed the company of old friends. Happy Holidays to all Au Pairs and Host Families! Please send in more photos and I will add them to this posting!