At The Home for Little Wanderers, we believe that every child should experience the fun and freedom of summertime. That’s why, thanks to the generous donations of those who give to The Home, we take the youth we serve out to the ballgame at Fenway or to the great outdoors to canoe, hike or horseback ride. We climb new heights at an indoor ropes course, trek historic trails and seek culture at renowned museums.
But ask kids across The Home for their favorite seasonal outing and they’ll undoubtedly say Six Flags, Water Country or Canobie Lake Park. According to Program Director Kapr Bangura and Permanency & Activities Coordinator Rachel Morford, these stand-out summer activities are more than a day of fun, they’re…
Mood-lifting.
When our kids are taken to a feel-good setting or engaged in a thrilling activity, there’s little time for intrusive thoughts or distressing memories. At a theme park, worries and situations fall away, smiles grow wider, and happiness prevails. Some youth report feeling powerful after conquering the Superman ride, which has a maximum thrill level with a 200-foot drop and 77 mph speeds, but all leave thinking: Today was a good day.
Community-building.
Even before the main attraction, when kids are preparing snacks for the day, creating a playlist for a van singalong or just talking with one another during the ride, a sense of community builds just as surely as anticipation. Going to a common place and experiencing it together strengthens friendships with peers and connections with staff. At The Home, much of the work we do is relational. Our staff develop strong, trusted relationships that influence children and teens and positive bonds that have impact.
Eye-opening.
The Home’s summer enrichment offerings allow participants to try new things. There are always kids who haven’t been on a roller coaster before. Many families can’t afford expensive tickets for recreation, and, as a result, their children don’t have access. When they do, youth make important discoveries, often surprising themselves. The child who asks to hold a staff member’s hand while anxiously awaiting their turn may be the very same child who darts back in line when the ride is over, an instant thrill-seeker. And the one who tackles new heights after initial hesitation, legs dangling from her open-air swing high in the air, is so proud she can’t wait to tell Mom.
Equalizing.
Six Flags and other theme parks are wonderfully neutral environments. Youth served by The Home are just like all of the other kids enjoying themselves at the park; they don’t stand out as “different.” As for youth and staff? There is no “us” and “them.” Roles are forgotten. It’s just people having fun, laughing together with surprise at the intensity of the anti-gravity spinning ride or sharing fried dough and delighting in its powdery perfection.
Memory-making.
Our trips to Six Flags are filled with plenty of in-the-moment fun, but they also make a lasting impression. These excursions can be pretty monumental in the minds of a child, and the memories are incredible. Kids preparing for this year’s outing recall their first trip, laughing with staff about how they were scared to go on a ride, revisiting their common story, or telling other children who have just arrived at The Home how much they’re going to love it. They are inserting new positive memories into their lives that they’ll access again and again.
Magic!
Feeling a part of community, newfound confidence, challenges faced and won, happy exhilaration and contented exhaustion when the day is done—you simply can’t underestimate the magic of fun.
