The first meeting of the Froebel Circle was held on May 27, 1897, at the home of Miss Nina Pape. There were eight members present. The work of the Circle was to be directed toward increasing the health and happiness of underprivileged children. This Circle was to bear the name of the great German educator, Frederick Froebel, who founded the kindergarten system. The Froebel Circle was organized as a branch of the International Order of the King’s Daughters and Sons, a religious order.

Miss Nina Pape, outstanding civic leader and founder of Pape School, conceived the plan of having a Fresh Air Home at Tybee Island. The Circle chose as its motto, Matthew 25:40, “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.” It chose as its text Isaiah 11:6, “A little child shall lead them.”

The Fresh Air Home opened the first season on Saturday, July 2, 1897. The upper floor of a house at Tybee was rented and the Circle took in fifty children, six children each week. The first matron, Mrs. Chase, was paid $5.00 per month. She was assisted by her two daughters, sixteen and twelve years old. They were each paid one dollar and a half per month, bringing the monthly total to $8.00. The Circle had $100.00 the first summer, of which $50.00 was paid for rent and $50.00 for running the home. Free transportation to Tybee and back was provided by the Central of Georgia Railroad. Many people contributed to that first season - the ice companies and the butchers. Books, medicine, and toys also were donated.

The Home had grown so by the third season in 1899 that a cottage was rented, and one hundred and twenty-five children were in care during the summer. By 1900, a new home was bought from the Zoraida Archery Club. This facility consisted of a main building and two cottages. One hundred and eighty children were cared for that summer.

In five years, the Circle owned the home and was free of debt. A trained nurse, matron, assistant matron and cook were caring for two hundred seventy children. After the first year the children, both boys and girls, were provided with regulation camping clothes.

In 1921, the cost per child had risen from one dollar and a half to five dollars a week. In order to raise money, the Circle sponsored card parties, oyster roasts, and rummage sales.

Boys Week was instituted at the home in the early 1900’s. It took place the last week of the season, but as leaders were difficult to obtain, it was decided to end Boys’ Week in 1923.

In 1918, the Home was damaged by fire just before its scheduled opening. Upon seeing the fire, the engineer of the Tybee train stopped the train, and the entire crew and passengers ran across the road to put it out. It was repaired and everything was in readiness for the opening of the Home.

During World War I the Home was used by the Red Cross as a school for children at nearby Fort Screven.

In 1927, the cost of running the Home was much higher, and it was proposed that the Circle enter the Community Chest. On June 13, 1927, it was unanimously decided to enter the Community Chest the next year. The Circle remained in the U.C.S. until 1971.

In 1928, a bequest of $40,000 was left the Circle by Percival R. Cohen. This gift made it possible to erect a building known as the Cohen Shelter for Little Ones. On April 15, 1929, the cornerstone of the Cohen Shelter for Little Ones was laid with impressive ceremonies by the Masons. Enclosed in the cornerstone was a box containing corn, wine and oil - emblematic of plenty, the spirit of joy, and the spirit of peace. The box also contained a copy of the Savannah Morning News, a copy of Mr. Cohen’s will, a history of Froebel Circle, a coin of the year 1898, and a coin of the year 1928.

Mrs. C. F. Graham gave a parcel of land which was later exchanged with the Junior League for their lot adjoining the Fresh Air Home. It was necessary for the Circle to borrow $12,000 to complete the construction of the building and for operating expenses. Mrs. George Walker gave $5,000 to be used for the staff building, and the hospital was built as The Elizabeth Barrow Memorial Hospital.

In 1932, The Circle was left $10,000 by John Devine Carswell. This money enabled them to operate during the Depression, caring for one hundred and twenty-seven babies and twenty-nine mothers who needed rest. Six hundred older children were made healthier and happier.

In February of 1943, the Circle voted to withdraw from the King’s Daughters. Although they were no longer a party of the Order, it was decided to keep the same name, Froebel Circle, merely dropping the phrase “of the King’s Daughters.”

In 1971, the Fresh Air Home was dropped from the United Community Appeal. Mr. and Mrs. Cecil Day noticed this in the paper while staying at Tybee. They had always enjoyed seeing the children on the beach. They met with Circle members and made an offer to donate $5,000 a summer to be matched by our members. Mrs. Day remarked, “The Lord sends him where there is a need.” That year started the campaign into the community. In 1975, the Savannah Benevolent Association, Inc., gave the Home $10,000 to update the plumbing and repair the pavilion.

In 1978, at Mr. Cecil Day’s death, the Fresh Air Home was left a yearly, changeable income from his investments. In 1981, Dr. Darnell Brawner, a longtime friend of the Froebel Circle, gave $20,000 which was used to paint the outside of all buildings at the Home.

From the original eight members, the Circle today has an organization consisting of fifty members. The work is carried on through its various committees whose chairmen, with the officers of the Circle, make the Executive Board. The present Home is composed of five red brick units. The main building is the Cohen Shelter where the dining room accommodates one hundred children. The other units are: the Staff Cottage, named in honor of Mrs. George P. Walker; the Hospital Building, built by members of the Elizabeth Butler Circle, named The Elizabeth Barrow Memorial Hospital, it is now used as a nursery for children four and five years of age; the Nina Anderson Pape Cottage; and Anna’s cottage.

Each summer the Home is opened for eight weeks. The various committee members see that everything is in readiness for each child to spend ten days in the Home enjoying the ocean, salt air, play on the beach, and supervision by counselors of strong character. The maximum capacity of the Home at one time is ninety children.

The daily program at the Home includes play on the beach, supervised games on the camp grounds, crafts, music activities, Bible stories, and field trips. The purpose of the Home is to improve the health of the children, to build character, and to help them grow into better men and women - both physically and morally.

The work of the Fresh Air Home and its influence on the lives of the children stand as the realization of the dreams of one woman. It is a monument to the work on innumerable men and women and as an institution dedicated, “...unto the least of these,” and to the belief that “a little child shall lead them...”