Rhonda Corkedale opens her door with a radiant smile and a warm welcome. “Come on in,” she says as she offers coffee and tea. As you envelop the smell of cinnamon in a classy yet country home in West Windsor, her dogs peer over the kitchen gate to see who it is. After all, it isn’t the first time she’s opened her door to a stranger.##M:[more]##
For the past three years, Rhonda Corkedale has been involved in the Fresh Air fund, a not-for-profit organization providing summer vacations to New York City children from low-income families. The program, which began in 1877, now helps thousands of inner city children each year experience the luxuries of summer in the suburbs and introduces them to friends and families that may last a lifetime.
Corkedale found out about the Fresh Air program through her sister several summers ago when her children’s camp in Long Island approached her about participating in the program. Her sister was pleased and passed the information on to her.
“I’m a rescuer,” says Corkedale. “I rescue everything and I like to help.” If her testimony isn’t enough, her rescued dogs and pet skunk, Cruella, should be proof.
The first child Corkedale and her family hosted had never even ridden a bicycle. “I had no idea how great this program was,” says Corkedale, “It is a wonderful opportunity for both sides involved.”
A 47 year-old, married mother of two, Corkedale, an interior designer, has her hands full. Her 15-year old son, Tyler, plays on a traveling soccer team and her 17 year-old college bound daughter, Olivia, is involved in performing arts at High School North. A member of the high school choir, she will soon embark on the trip to Prague.
Corkedale credits a lot of her success to her family, all of whom she says are a big help in running the program. She even says her Brooklyn-raised husband is better with children then she is. As she sits in her cozy kitchen in her house on quiet Ginnie Lane, coffee on the table and that pet skunk purring in her lap, Corkedale gladly recalls some of her most memorable moments with the Fresh Air children.
“Last summer when we went to pick up the kids at the bus stop, we had to wait for three hours in the heat,” she explains. Corkedale was amazed at how happy and patient all of the children remained. “They were so well behaved,” she exclaims. That summer, while waiting in the heat, Corkedale had the opportunity to meet Alainis, a Fresh Air participant who will forever touch her heart. “When I met Alainis, there was a connection,” she says. Though Corkedale and her family were not the host family for Alainis last summer, she came to visit them and they began writing to one another.
Alainis and her mother came to visit the Corkedales on Halloween last year. They dressed up, went on a haunted hayride, and enjoyed trick-or-treating. “It was so much fun for everyone,” Corkedale says. “It was like having relatives come and visit.”
The Fresh Air Fund provides just that for the inner city children — fresh air. For one or two weeks, children are able to get away from the city streets and enjoy the grass, the water, and — best of all — a fun vacation.
“I grew up on boats,” says Corkedale of her native home in Marblehead, Massachusetts. “It was a sailing town, I miss the ocean.” She relocated to the New York area when she got married, 20 years ago. “We’ve lived in West Windsor for 11 years now. It was all farmland back then, but it is still a great place to live.”
Her mother and father owned a family shoe business in Massachusetts. An old-fashioned mom and pop shop called ‘The Shoetique’. “My parents knew every customer in town,” Corkedale says. “I really think they did it more for the fun of it then anything else.”
Her parents also had a huge group of friends there. Corkedale’s father died last year but the strong ties with their friends still remain and keep her mother going. “My mom still hangs out with her elementary and high school friends.”
Perhaps it is the close family ties and the value in hometown connections that make Corkedale so passionate about this program. Going on her third summer, now as chairperson, Corkedale is optimistic about the program’s success but hopes the publicity will encourage more families to become involved.
“This program has really gotten more flexible,” Corkedale explains. “People can host a child for a week or two weeks, in some instances they are allowed to go away on vacation with the families.” Host families can request the age group and gender of the child staying with them. Children visiting for the first time are 6 to 12 years old, returning children are 6 to 18 years old.
Though there is an application and screening process for host families before they are selected to host a child, there are no fees. Host families must provide references and receive a visit from a Fresh Air Fund committee member before engaging in the program.
“We just did okay last year. We only got half a dozen phone calls, I was very surprised.” Hoping to raise the awareness in more families with young children, Corkedale plans to reach out more to the other Mercer County communities this year.
“It’s a playmate for people who have young kids at home and it’s a good opportunity to see the other side — some kids have so much here,” she says. Corkedale adds that not all hosts need to have children at home. “There are people who no longer have children living at home, older couples,” she says.
She reflects on one host family, Harvey and Florence Cohen of West Windsor, who recently celebrated their 40th anniversary last year and also took in a girl named Mia, and had a wonderful time .
“It gives the children’s parents a break too,” Corkedale says. “Their parents are trying so hard to get them these opportunities.”
Corkedale is grateful for her involvement in the Fresh Air program. “I’d really like to see more people give their time to help others,” she says. “We’re losing that.”
For more information on the Fresh Air Fund and to find out how you can get involved, contact Rhonda Corkedale at 609-799-4673 or call the Fund at 800-367-0003.
