CENTER TWP — For this holiday season, 13-year-old Patrick Zheng traded the bustling streets of Brooklyn for a quiet country home nestled in rural Butler County.

Patrick has visited the home of John and Brenda McCall almost every year since he was 6 years old as part of the Fresh Air Fund — a program to get children from the inner city to experience life in rural communities.

“The city is filled with cars and people yelling at each other,” Patrick said Saturday, sitting next to his host family and his friends in the McCall's home on Oak Forest Lane. “Here, you can hear the birds singing.”

Patrick typically visits the McCalls in the summer, but he missed his opportunity this past summer because he was busy studying for the specialized high school admissions test — the eighth grader is hopeful his score will get him into a top high school next year.

He said the chance to visit for the holidays was special.

“It was really nice,” he said. “I had so much fun opening presents, and I was very grateful I could come during Christmas.”

Brenda McCall has been a Fresh Air Fund representative in Western Pennsylvania for nearly two decades.

She said the program is designed for families to host a child for a week or two, giving them the chance to get outside and play in an area outside the inner city.

“But a lot of people have lifelong relationships with the children,” she said, using Patrick's annual visits as an example.

Patrick has become close friends with the sons of McCall's friend, Kelly Somerville of Center Township.

Somerville said her boys — Josh and Jack, ages 12 and 10 — look forward to Patrick's visits and stay in touch with him throughout the year on the Internet.

“Whenever he comes back, it's like they're never apart,” she said.

Patrick said the boys do typical things like play video games and run around in the dirt.

He noted Alameda Park and the Starlight Drive-In as memorable stops in the county.

“We just like to have fun,” he said.

Somerville also took Patrick to Butler Memorial Hospital, where she works.

It was a memorable experience for the boy, who hopes to become a surgeon.

“I'm actually hoping to work in Butler someday,” Patrick said, adding he has interest in the profession because it would allow him to help people.

While Patrick visits the McCalls annually, this year was also special because Patrick's older sister, Zhi, made the trip down from Brooklyn to visit the family.

Zhi interned with the Fresh Air Fund while she was in college and credited that experience to how Patrick got exposed to the program.

“My family is very grateful for meeting Brenda and Kelly and everything they've done for Patrick,” Zhi said.

McCall, who visits with prospective host families across Butler and surrounding counties, said she is hopeful more families will get involved with the initiative.

“It's a very nice program,” she said. “It's a great opportunity to help kids in (New York City).”

For more information on the program, visit freshairfund.org or call McCall at 724-283-4656.