Karen S. Relstab

Sunday OCTOBER 22, 2006 Last modified: Saturday, September 30, 2006 7:09 PM CDT

Experience Cultural Care Au Pair

By DANI SCHWEIGERT, dschweigert@nwnewsgroup.com

LIBERTYVILLE - It is 3 p.m. on a Monday, and a young woman with long dark hair and bright brown eyes steps inside a house, taking off her gym shoes and slipping into pink fuzzy slippers as she chases after two young children.

It is 3 p.m., and Diana Hortœa, 26, is doing exactly what she has always wanted to do - working with children and living with an American family.

“I’ve always liked kids,” Hortœa said with a warm smile. “I was a preschool teacher in Bucaramanga, Colombia, and I wanted to come [to America] to improve my English and have a great experience.”

And Hortœa is getting to live out her dream of being a part of the Kite family in Vernon Hills thanks to Karen S. Relstab and the Cultural Care Au Pair program, which helps bring individuals from other countries to the U.S. for a once-in-a-lifetime cultural experience with an American family. Relstab is a local childcare coordinator for Cultural Care and works with the program out of her home in Libertyville to provide Au Pairs for families all around Lake County.

Being a parent herself, Relstab said she knows how important it is to find high-standard childcare.

“Cultural Care is a flexible form of childcare,” Relstab said. “Families can set their own hours, and it’s cost effective. The care provider is in your home, so not only do you get childcare, but you give your kids a cultural experience that opens the child’s world.”

And Hortœa is certainly helping the Kite family children discover a culture they otherwise might never have known. Amy Kite said her children, 13-year-old Skyler, 3-year-old Aaron and 2-year-old Ronen, have learned more Spanish from Hortœa in the three weeks she has been with the family than she ever could have imagined.

“She’s eager to teach them,” Amy said. “This world is not just us. We all need to be a little more tolerant of those around us and learn as much as we can.”

Amy knows the importance of learning about a new culture. She has lived in Germany and traveled abroad to various places in Europe and the Middle East.

“It’s wonderful having [Hortœa] teach all of us, and we’re teaching her,” Amy said. “If she makes a mistake, we’ll go over it until she learns. That’s what she’s here for, and I take it very seriously.”

Hortœa takes her visit to the U.S. seriously as well, as she is hoping to open her own school and eventually become a lawyer when she returns to Colombia. But that might not be for a while, since Hortœa has decided to extend her stay with the Kite family until February 2007.

The opportunity for Au Pairs to extend their visit to the U.S. is a relatively new addition to the Cultural Care program, Relstab said, and was developed in the past two years. Amy was thrilled to learn about the change and said the family might not have been as eager to join Cultural Care if Hortœa could not stay with them for more than one year.

“I didn’t want someone new coming in every 12 months,” she said. “I wanted someone the kids could really bond with.”

Watching Skyler, Aaron and Ronen interact with Hortœa, it is clear this goal has been achieved. When Ronen wanders into the house, his cheeks caked with mud, Hortœa gently sits him down and washes off his face, talking in a high-pitched voice to make him laugh.

It comes as no surprise that the Kite children have taken to having an Au Pair in their home, as the family had a nanny from Poland until this past August. Having a positive experience with this nanny made Amy and her husband, Mike, want to continue with Cultural Care.

“It’s easier than many might think,” Amy said. “You don’t always have to wait the entire process, and we quickly realized the quality of individual we can have [with this program].”

But the Kite family members are not the only ones who have benefited from Cultural Care. Hortœa has had some amazing experiences, as well.

“I’ve traveled to Niagara Falls, Washington D.C., Pennsylvania and many places,” she said. “It’s a chance to learn the language, meet people and make many friends.”

Although traveling and interacting with new acquaintances are wonderful, Hortœa is even more excited about another experience - seeing her first snowfall this coming winter.

“I’m so happy,” she squealed with excitement. “I’ve never seen snow before in Colombia, and I can’t wait!”

Want to know more?

For more info.: Contact Karen S. Relstab at (847) 680-3794, e-mail her at relstabks@aol.com, or visit her Web site at http:// KRelstab.local.culturalcare.com.

Cultural Care Au Pair: To learn about the program, visit the Web site at www.culturalcare.com.

– CLOSE WINDOW —