Anixi Au Pair

MEET A HOST FAMILY IN NEW JERSEY

Οικογένεια υποδοχής στο New Jersey

Πιθανόν να αναρωτιέσαι πως είναι να συμμετέχεις στο πρόγραμμα au pair και να μένεις με μια οικογένεια υποδοχής; Να ζεις με ξένους… Δεν είσαι ο μόνος :). Κάθε χρόνο διεξάγεται ο διαγωνισμός “Au Pair of the Year”, όπου οι οικογένειες υποδοχής βραβεύουν τους συμμετέχοντες Παρακάτω μπορείς να διαβάσεις τα γράμματα που στέλνουν για τον διαγωνισμό οι οικογένειες αλλά και οι συμμετέχοντες για την συνεργασία τους. Ελπίζουμε ότι θα σε βοηθήσει να καταλάβεις καλύτερα πως είναι να συμμετέχεις στο πρόγραμμα και να ζεις με μια οικογένεια υποδοχής.

Το γράμμα της οικογένειας για την Ιωάννα

Ioanna is from Greece. I was seeking an Au Pair that would allow my Family to enrich their existing understanding of the language but I couldn’t have imagined how valuable this cultural exchange would be. Ioanna is a professional and mature on how she supports my Family. This has been exemplified when she first came to my home wanting to know about each child and who they are, what makes them happy and what are my expectations.

She is able to extend her kindness to my children but provides a strong foundation for them when they do not behave as my Husband and I expect. This is exemplified when my Twin son challenges her authority and with care, approaches him and let’s him know that what he is doing is not appropriate behavior. Ioanna is a team player. She is able to adapt to our other caregiver as well as other babysitters that support us periodically given our Family of 4 children. She has always been respectful of the other person’s needs and treats them on how they want to be treated.

Ioanna is a very empathic person and caring for other people and having a desire to help them is not a common characteristic. She is there for my Twins when they get a cut on their hand and request all different types of characters available in band aids. She is there for my Twin daughter when she becomes a bit difficult with drama as she gets down to my daughter’s petite level and touches her nose to give her a little love that it will all be ok for whatever issue is at hand with a big loving hug. She is a mentor to my son. She takes the time to work with my son on his Greek and improve his confidence in speaking.

Ioanna is versatile in adapting to the study needed for my son whether English, Greek, math or reading. She prides herself on his success. Our main reason for nominating Ioanna is because she deserves it. Ioanna has made it so natural for her to be part of our Family for all the love and dedication she provides to our little ones. It is not just any person that can leave the country they are comfortable in and live with a Family they have no history with to care for the precious little miracles that we have been blessed with. I truly hope that you will recognize Ioanna for all her positive qualities for being an Au Pair and setting a baseline for all other Au Pair to aspire to.

Thank you for your consideration!

Το γράμμα της Ιωάννας

“Αu pair” (plural: “au pairs”) comes from the French term “au pair,” meaning “at par” or “equal to,” indicating that the relationship is intended to be one of equals. Τhe au pair is a domestic assistant from a foreign country working for, and living as part of, a host family. Typically, au pairs take on a share of the family’s responsibility for childcare as well as some housework, and receive a small monetary allowance for personal use.

The above definition from Wikipedia for the term “au pair” was the only information that I’d found one evening after completing my research to discover a way to study and work in the United States. The Google results showed me the way, Work and Study as an Au Pair. Au Pair. These two little words, unknown to me back then when I lived in Greece, changed my life completely!

Let’s start from the beginning though, so I can introduce myself and my story to all of you, who may have already had or have been thinking about having the same experience. My name is Ioanna and I come from Greece. The summer of 2012 found me unemployed, as was unfortunately true for many other young people in my country, because of the economic crisis. Everyone was struggling to find a job. That night, I took a chance to change my life and realize one of my biggest dreams, to travel and study in the United States. Au Pair International helped me do this after the completion of my application.

Everything happened so fast. I remember that before I left I didn’t know what to expect from this experience. My feelings were mixed. I was excited about traveling abroad, but sad to leave my family and friends behind, and I must admit I was scared. Scared because I would be traveling alone to a strange new place to live with an unknown family for a whole year. Also, this decision was somewhat against my culture. As many of you have perhaps already heard, Greek families are very close, and it is not common for a member to leave and go that far away, even for one’s own good.

Arriving at my new home though, I found that all my fears instantly disappeared. Six beautiful smiling faces were waiting for me at the door to welcome me with open arms. From that moment, I knew that I had made the right decision. Since day one, I felt a very strong connection with my host family. My host mom and dad, and their four little kids filled my heart with warmth and love. They became my family away from home, my extended family, and I cannot imagine myself anymore without them.

Besides the pleasure of living with my beautiful host family, working as an au pair has given me the opportunity to travel to many different places throughout the United States and meet a lot of interesting people, most of whom have become good friends. This whole experience has been a great journey for me. But as they say, “All good things must come to an End.” Soon, I will have to return to where I started, to my own country. Again, I will go with mixed feelings but this time for different reasons: happiness that I will see my loved ones again, and sadness because I will leave my new family behind. But I will keep my American family in my heart, my thoughts, and my prayers, and I will always treasure this experience.

Becoming an au pair was definitely the best decision I could have made, and it came when it wasn’t expected, like so many good things in life. And that’s a powerful lesson. Never give up your dreams, even when sometimes life shows its bad side.

Coming to an end, I would like to thank my host family, for making me part of their family and for trusting me with the most important thing in their life, their kids. As well, I would like to thank the agency Au Pair International, which supports initiatives like this one. I also want to encourage all the candidate au pairs and host families not to hesitate or have second thoughts about taking the chance to have this incredible experience.

Sincerely, Ioanna