Sakolsky"s modest two-story home in Plum is not where one might expect an international story to begin. He bought it 32 years ago and raised his family there with Barbara, his wife of 46 years. They have four children and eight grandchildren.

　　High on one living room wall, "The Sakolskys," in large letters, crowns a display of framed family photos surrounding the words: "Family is where our story begins. Life takes us to unexpected places. Love brings us home."

　　Asked to sum up his worldview in three words, Sakolsky answered without hesitation: family, respect, kindness -- the values that have anchored his life.

　　"Family first," he said. "I"m a family man."

　　That makes what he did in 1999 all the more striking. In his forties, in a doctor"s waiting room, he spotted a tiny magazine advertisement recruiting Americans to teach English in China. Without hesitation, he applied, flew to New York for an interview, and was offered the position.

　　His parents were stunned and came all the way from Florida to talk him out of it: He had four children and a stable teaching career. His oldest daughter was a high school senior, while his youngest son was entering elementary school. But his daughters supported him.

　　"My dad said, "You"re crazy. How are you going to go away for a year? You have four children, a wife and a house to take care of." Then he looked at my girls and said to them, "Are you going to let your dad go to China for that long?""

　　"And my girls looked at their grandfather, and I"ll never forget this. They said to him, "Whatever dad wants to do, we support him."