Cultural Care Au Pair volunteers at the 2022 Chicago Marathon

October in Chicago is a beautiful time. Playoff baseball and the chill of fall are in the air, and Oktoberfest celebrations abound in the city. What’s a better way to celebrate the change of seasons, than with a marathon?

On October 9, 2022, 36 Cultural Care au pairs from all over the world came together in Grant Park to hand out water to the 40,000 participants of the 44th Bank of America Chicago Marathon. The au pairs were from Argentina, Austria, Brazil, Colombia, Germany, France, Italy, Hungary, Mexico, the Netherlands, and Sweden. They cheered for runners in their native languages, celebrated with runners from their countries, and praised every person who crossed the finish line. It was a beautiful day to celebrate the accomplishments of so many incredible people.

Click here to read the full story

A Global Family Day in the Garden State

New Jersey Global Family Day - 2022

Celebrating cultural exchange and our global family community

Something special happens when people come together from around the world and share their cultures, values, and ideas: a community of global families is born. On August 13, 2022, Cultural Care Au Pair celebrated its cultural exchange program in New Jersey with a Global Family Day event at the Clipper Pavilion in West Orange.

Families and au pairs from across New Jersey came together for a morning of games, crafts, food, and culture to meet and mingle with people from all around the world in the spirit of cultural exchange. Almost 500 people attended the event. It was the biggest event Cultural Care Au Pair has ever held in the state of New Jersey.

Click here to read the full story

Cultural Care Au Pair goes to the 2022 Boston Marathon

On a perfect spring day that makes New Englanders giddy about the possibility of summer, 25,314 runners from 120 countries and all fifty states left the Boston Marathon starting line in Hopkinton, MA. On April 18, 2022, thirty au pairs from fourteen countries anxiously awaited the runners at well-stocked water and Gatorade stations at the top of Heartbreak Hill.

The volunteer group was comprised of au pairs from Cultural Care Au Pair who will spend their exchange year living with a host family in the United States as part of the BridgeUSA federal cultural exchange program. They came from home countries as far away as Colombia, Italy, Germany, France, Brazil, Australia, China, Mexico, South Africa, Sweden, Slovenia, Argentina, Spain, and Estonia. And they came from their US host homes all across Massachusetts as well as New Hampshire, Maine, and Rhode Island. They arrived at the Marathon as strangers; they left as friends.

Click here to read the full story.

Maria Camila from Colombia

2022 Au Pair of the Year

Nominated by her host family from Fayetteville

Since 2012, we have hosted eight wonderful Au Pairs and the most exceptional has been Camila who joined our family in March 2021 after a year wait due to COVID. Camila, a loving, genuine and fun person, not only nurtured and instructed our 7-year-old boys, but she has also made a special connection with our older teenage kids and our extended family and friends.

Camila is exceptionally thoughtful and is always trying to help others. Normally, my older teenagers don't make a connection with the babysitters or Au Pairs, but somehow Camila actually made great friends with them.

My husband and I have very busy military jobs and it has been an enormous relief to have Camila to help us. My twins are doing really well in school, despite the situation with COVID. I give all the credit to Camila who gets them to knock out their homework every day. My twins are also playing tennis and I am super happy that Camila has been interested in taking lessons as well and learning how to play. Camila is just open minded and willing to try new things. We consider Camila to be part of our family forever.

The Grims Homer family and their au pair Paola Andrea

2022 Host Family of the Year

Nominated by their au pair Paola Andrea from Colombia

My host family is the dream of every au pair! They really enjoy being the best hosts, they care about my dreams and my beliefs. They make me feel as if I’m in my home country Colombia. They look for ways to make me feeI supported, cared, and most importantly loved. I look up to my host family for advice and my time with them has taught me valuable lessons that will make an impact in my development as a citizen of the world!

They were supportive since the beginning and they were open to learn more about my traditions and goals in life. Since that first time I spoke to them and saw Bailey, I realized this was meant to be! They enjoy being good hosts, they made me feel in Colombia. I noticed that there was a genuinely bond between us, they have even shared calls with me and my family.

What else could I ask for? They are perfect, they contribute so much to my personal and professional growth. Being with them has strengthened me, this is much more that I could have ever dreamed of before venturing into this experience. I feel infinitely grateful, they are the best and I love them very much. We are a family, we listen to each other, we understand each other, we take care of each other, we are united, WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS.

The Rowley family and their au pair, Daniela

2020 Au Pair of the Year

Nominated by their au pair, Daniela

“Daniela has raised the bar for au pairs everywhere.  There are good au pairs, there are even some really great au pairs, and then there is Dani, a category all onto her own.

Dani joined our family with 3 children in March of 2018.  We have a bustling household like any other – children with limitless energy, making lots of noise and endlessly vying to be the one in the spotlight. It can be overwhelming to feel pulled in multiple directions by high-pitched needy voices throughout the day but not Dani, she saw the chaos as her mandate to control and calm and more than rose to the occasion.”

- Submitted by the Rowley family of Columbia, South Carolina

Click here to read the Rowley family’s entire essay nominating Daniela for Au Pair of the Year

The Aga-Phelan family and their au pair, Luisa

2020 Host Family of the Year

Nominated by their Colombian au pair, Luisa

“When you make the decision to be an au pair, you have a million questions about what the next year of your life will be like, I knew that so many things would change but I never imagined that it would be the best decision I would make in life.

Every day upon waking I feel the blessing of having a true family, it is wonderful to have people who love you and value you, it is incredible as from the first day I arrived at our home, they made me feel that it was part of their life, this year has been full of wonderful moments, my family has allowed this experience to be unforgettable.”

- Submitted by au pair Luisa, currently living in Denver, CO with her host family

Click here to read Luisa’s entire essay nominating the Aga-Phelan family for Host Family of the Year

The Hertl family and their au pair, Rico

2020 Au Pair of the Year finalist

Rico, an au pair from Germany, living in Washington

"Our lives are forever changed for the better because of Rico. He arrived during a particularly challenging year for our family due to our infant son’s unforeseen medical issues. Rico never blinked twice. He dove in head-first and instantly became a calm, capable, stable member of our family while offering reasons to laugh along the way. He’s been flexible, consistent and has been an absolute joy to have in our home. The bond between Rico and both of our children is difficult to put into words. He was the breath of fresh air we needed that brought life and laughter back into our home. Rico has supported us through multiple medical appointments and even our son’s third surgery. Rico faced the unknown with such courage and optimism, two characteristics that I can only hope my children will carry with them for the rest of their lives. While all of this is larger than life and perhaps not what you would expect from an au pair – he is also engaged and ready to hit the ground running every day. Rico is very orderly, and we laugh because through life with Rico, our children now cover their mouths when they cough, put their shoes in their shoe baskets and hang their coats on their coat hooks.”

Submitted by the Hertl family, host family in Washington

See all of the finalists of Au Pair of the Year 2020

The Henderson family and their thirteen German au pairs

An au pair family reunion

The Henderson family travels to Germany every other summer to reunite with former au pairs

When she had her first son, Shannon Henderson took the advice of a friend and looked into the au pair program for her childcare needs. Soon after, she welcomed her first German au pair, Irina, in 2008. Over twelve years later, Shannon and her family have hosted thirteen au pairs! Every other year, Shannon and her two sons travel to Germany to host reunions for as many of their former au pairs as possible!

“I was hesitant, in the beginning, at the idea of having a stranger move into our home,” said host mom Shannon. “But I soon saw the benefit of having something so flexible that was actually a loving family relationship. We will continue to host au pairs until we no longer need childcare, but the relationships with continue indefinitely.”

Cultural Exchange takes off: au pairs visit Peoria Air National Guard Base

A group of international au pairs were given the opportunity to gain firsthand exposure to life on a U.S. military base. Au pairs from South Africa, Colombia, Brazil and Mexico were able to learn about the history and customs that are unique to the military in American culture.

Through a guided tour of the Peoria Air National Guard Base in Peoria, Illinois, the au pairs were able to learn about the machines and equipment, as well as interact with the men and women from the armed forces stationed at the base. The au pairs were given the opportunity to sit in the cockpit of a C130, and learn about the features of it and the types of items it transports. They also witnessed a ‘Fini’ Flight, which is a loop retiring pilots perform before they officially retire. The retirees exited the plane and were met with a barrage of water from friends, family and coworkers.

The visit was inspired by Lesley, an au pair from Mexico, whose host parents work on the base. 

“My fellow au pairs and I had the opportunity to tour the base where my host parents work. It was an amazing experience and I enjoyed learning more about them and what they do,” said Lesley. “For me it is really amazing to see what is achieved by working as a team.”

“I was so excited when Erica, a host mom that works at the Air Force Base, suggested we tour the base for our monthly meeting. The military is something many Americans are proud of, so it was neat for the au pairs to be able to experience touring the C130 and hearing about the role of the Air Force,” said Local Childcare Consultant Kim Peterson, who organized the excursion.