Kids & Family

Good News: City Kids to Hit the 'Burbs For Summer

Some stories put a smile on your face. Here's our wrap-up from around northern Suffolk and the East End.

As a local news organization, Patch covers stories of all kinds, from heartbreaking tragedies to nitty-gritty breakdowns of government and school district issues. But some stories are simply inspiring, often showing that at the heart of our communities is a desire to do good. Here are some of the touching headlines from the past seven days.

City Kids Reunite with Host Families

There were lots of new, smiling faces in Commack over the weekend, when dozens of children in the Fresh Air Fund, met their summer host families at the Target parking lot.

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The Fresh Air Fund,  a nonprofit founded in 1877,  places New York City children for a week with families in a small town to enjoy a different kind of environment. Many children, between the ages of 6 and 18, stay with the same host family summer after summer. A bus of 21 city children have arrived in Commack July 18 to spend the week with local host families, with a second trip coming in August.

Participants in the Fresh Air Fund arrived to meet and greet their local host families in Commack over the weekend. Photo by the Fresh Air Fund.

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Ronald McDonald Family Room Unveiled at Children’s Hospital

In the practice of pediatric medicine, admitting a child to the hospital is kind of like admitting the child's whole family. That's according to Dr. Margaret McGovern, physician-in-chief of Stony Brook Long Island Children's Hospital, who on Thursday helped cut the ribbon on the hospital's new Ronald McDonald Family Room – a brand-new space where families can spend time together while a child is in the hospital. "This is a happy day for Stony Brook Long Island Children's," McGovern said. "This is a project that we're so excited about."

Chance Meeting Spawns Fundraiser for Girl With Leukemia

It's a feeling many people have had before: whether it's related to kids, adults, loved ones, or sometimes even a stranger – that feeling where helping just seems like the right thing to do.

While getting her hair cut one day in June at Anthony Scott Salon in Sound Beach, Culley just so happened to see Julia Wilson – a 9-year-old girl who was diagnosed with leukemia two years ago – walk in and get her head shaved. After Wilson's blood cancer had gone into remission, Culley said, it had returned, and "you could tell it was pretty traumatic to her. Everyone was holding back tears."

After speaking with Wilson's dad, Culley found out that the girl is due to have a bone marrow transplant, and to help pay the family's medical bills, Culley has teamed up with Shaolin King Fu Studios owner Ed Turney to hold a fundraiser at the end of the month.


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