Sulouff Family Summer Story

When Joe first left the Bronx for Sunbury, Pennsylvania, where is Friendly Town host family lives, he was nervous. Having just turned six, he was finally able to participate in The Fresh Air Fund's Friendly Town program, just as his two older sisters had done. Joe was headed to the home of Leslie and Brian Sulouff, along with their sons Chad, 12, and Scott, 15, and their now college-age daughter, Brooke. Now 13, Joe has spent two weeks every summer with the Sulouffs, who he considers a second family.

For the Sulouffs, especially Chad and Scott, summer is full of swimming and baseball, two of Joe's favorite activities. And each year, Joe says, his relationship with his Fresh Air family has strengthened. Traditions have developed, including a trip to Hershey Park over the July 4th weekend. As Joe excitedly describes, they always go to the water park first, go on some rides, and then gather together to watch fireworks.

Along with his beloved time spent playing outdoors, Joe has savored some new dishes in the kitchen. Joe offers advice to children heading to Friendly Town for the first time. "Just stick with it," he says. "You might be scared at first, but when you get there, you'll like it." When asked what he misses most about New York City while in Sunbury, he doesn't mention the city, but rather his mom. Joe has made it a point to include his mother in all that he's done with the Sulouffs. She has two scrapbooks at home full of her son's memories, which get fatter with every July trip.

Over the past nine years, Joe has watched as the Sulouff's oldest daughter Brooke advanced through her studies and got accepted to college. Though he's just 13, he says that his Fresh Air family has brought up the topic of college and higher education. Right now he aspires to be a firefighter, but his plans for the future aren't rigid. One constant, he says, will be his great relationship with the Sulouff family!