For most families with children, a trip to the zoo, a day at the playground, or a summer outing is a natural part of the holiday. But for some families, even small holiday experiences are out of reach.

Therefore, 19 families with young children from Home-Start Tønder were able to participate in the project 'Three Fantastic Holiday Days,' which Fonden Sol og Strand by Margit og Kjeld supported with a donation of 45,077 kroner.

The program included a day at Glad Zoo, play and movement at Jump-A-Lot in Rødekro, and a nature day at the playground in Højer, where children and adults cooked over a fire, played together, and explored nature.

– For many of the families, the three holiday days were the only holiday experience of the year. Therefore, it means a lot that with the support from Fonden Sol og Strand by Margit og Kjeld, we have been able to give both children and adults days filled with play, community, and good memories, says local coordinator in Home-Start Tønder, Rikke Okkels.

Home-Start Tønder supports around 30 to 35 families with young children each year who find themselves in a pressured or vulnerable life situation. Through volunteer family friends, the families receive support in their daily lives, and the holiday days are a natural extension of the work to create safe communities.

– An African proverb says that it takes a village to raise a child. Our goal in Home-Start is to create that village, which parents can lean into for support and encouragement. This has become even more important in a time when many families are experiencing increasing pressure in their daily lives, says Rikke Okkels.

This year, 19 families, 17 volunteer family friends, and local coordinator Rikke Okkels participated in the three holiday days.

– It has been incredibly rewarding to see how the relationships between the families and the volunteers were strengthened. The families feel that the volunteers meet them with care without imposing demands. This is precisely the safety and community that Home-Start is about, says Rikke Okkels, who has been the local coordinator in Home-Start Tønder since the organization opened a branch in Tønder Municipality in 2019.

She observes that the holiday days have provided the families with shared experiences and simultaneously created new relationships. Therefore, the three holiday days mean a lot for both children and adults.

– The children take home good memories, while the parents get the opportunity to be part of a community. One of the participants said to me: 'The children loved being there, and at the same time, it was wonderful for me because the volunteers helped with the children.' It gave her a little breather, and it illustrates very well what these days are also about, says Rikke Okkels.

– We saw how two children, who met for the first time during the holiday days, quickly found each other in play, and afterwards, the families agreed to meet again. My hope is that the families go home with a sense of community, new relationships, and memories that they can cherish long after the summer, she says.