Life — July 18, 1918 — page 8: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Life's Fresh Air Fund This page documents Life magazine's charitable initiative providing two-week country vacations for poor urban children. The accompanying photograph shows "The Oculist" — an adult examining a child's eyes at Liff's Farm, the program's location in Connecticut. The text emphasizes the fund's practical social mission: enabling approximately 200 impoverished children annually to experience fresh air and rural life. It notes the program has operated for thirty-one years with strong reader support (nearly $1,000 donated in 1889 alone). The article highlights how minimal costs—under seven dollars per child for transportation and board—provide measurable humanitarian benefit, contrasting stark urban poverty with wholesome country experiences. The piece appeals to Victorian-era charitable sensibilities while documenting concrete social welfare work.