The
au pairs in New Orleans have had a very eventful year in America! Many of them
were evacuated from New Orleans with their host families and children after the devastating hurricane Katrina hit. Some of them were left homeless and others were relocated temporarily.
It was a frightening, exciting and difficult time for them as they all tried to adjust to relocating and coming to
grips with having lost a lot of their belongings.
After
they, and their families, settled down and began rebuilding, Au Pair in America offered the au pairs a round trip ticket to
anywhere in the United States. We thought they all deserved a little rest and
relaxation. Most of the au pairs chose to go to San Francisco on a long weekend
trip together. Another au pair decided that she wanted to visit friends in Florida. The Community Counselors throughout the U.S.
took up a collection and gave money to the au pairs so they could have some extra spending cash in San Francisco to
purchase clothes, buy dinner – or whatever! The letter below is from Renata
– a Brazilian au pair who wrote this letter of thanks after she returned from her weekend in San Francisco.
" Dear Au Pair in America,
I would just like to thank you for the amazing trip that you, your counselors and staff gave me and my friends
from New Orleans. We had a great time of fun and reunion! I'm really happy with
all your support and care for us!
I'm really glad to be part of the Au Pair in America program because I really feel that I have somebody for
me when I need! All of us from New Orleans have been through hard times of uncertainty,
stress, disappointments and even fear because of the hurricane Katrina. I'm ready
to go home and I'm really glad to be part of this program! It wasn't easy but I've grown a lot and learned many things that
changed my life forever!
Thanks for everything! I know that is hard to deal with new challenges like a destructive hurricane, but I
want say that you all did a great job!
Thanks and God Bless you,
Renata Assis "
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