HOME ABOUT PARTICIPANTS WHO I AM
THE SUNNYSIDE SOUND PROJECT
A dog's eye view: Charlie only let me photograph his T-shirt.
Hoover, my neighbor and one of Charlie's best friends (courtesy Pamela Eng)
CHARLIE:
We become friends and it just grows and grows."
When Hoover sees Charlie he gets so excited that he pulls his owner across Skillman Avenue. Hoover would never forgive himself if he missed his daily bone-shaped biscuit—and his friend Charlie, of course, whose pockets are brimming with dog treats.
“Hoover, he's number one,” Charlie says. “Are you kidding?” (This, by the way, I can confirm; Hoover and I are neighbors.)
Charlie has been handing out dog biscuits in Sunnyside for the past 30 years. In the early morning hours he walks his nine-year-old Cocker Spaniel Buddy around the block. Since Buddy gets irritable when Charlie shares biscuits with other dogs, Charlie drops him off at his apartment. After a breakfast at Skillman’s Famous Pizza and Coffee Shop, an unassuming diner that was briefly closed down for health code violations, Charlie takes his seat in front of the laundromat and begins his daily routine.
“That’s how I make a lot of friends: petting their dogs,” Charlie says. “We become friends and it just grows and grows.”
Some dogs are on a diet and not allowed to fill up on treats, and Charlie respects that. When he meets a new dog, he always asks his owner first whether it is okay to pet the new canine friend. But the next question is about the cookie.
If your dog needs a treat and a pat on the head, Charlie’s summer hours are from 7 AM to 8 AM.
