Good afternoon, Chicago. ✶
And happy Friday.
In today’s newsletter, we’re looking into how a federal program is helping to reduce poverty among older people by keeping older Chicagoans employed.
Plus, we’ve got reporting on a U.S. Supreme Court case that could impact bribery cases in Illinois, the story of the first person to buy a Ford Mustang in the U.S., six things to do this weekend and more community news you need to know below. 👇
⏱️: A 7-minute read
— Matt Moore, newsletter reporter (@MattKenMoore)
TODAY’S TOP STORY
How to help reduce poverty among older people? Keep them employed
Reporting by Amy Yee
Centering seniors: The Senior Community Service Employment Program is a federal work program that aims to help low-income adults ages 55 and older get jobs and work training. The program funds national nonprofits as well as dozens of state agencies. In turn, those groups offer work training and job placement at churches, libraries, health and senior centers and community groups.
Our aging population: The U.S. population is rapidly aging — baby boomers will be 65 and above by 2030. By 2034, there will be 77 million people ages 65 and over — outnumbering the population under 18. Cook County is following that national trend. Its population of older adult households ages 65 and above jumped more than 19% between 2012 and 2019, according to a report from DePaul University. Most of that growth was in Chicago.
The need to work: Financial pressures are growing among older adults — amid rising costs of living, dwindling savings and high inflation — and many urgently need to keep working. That’s especially so among those with low income, who face more barriers to finding and keeping jobs.
Program’s future at risk: In spite of their need for support, Senior Community Service Employment Program’s grantees and researchers say there has been talk over the years that funding will decrease or get cut entirely. Some critics say that not enough participants find full-time employment after the program ends. But given that the program serves older job seekers with multiple barriers, it’s harder for them to find jobs.
WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON?
- When the dog bites: Last year, Illinois ranked eighth in the country in dog bite claims. Local dog trainers say the key to preventing aggressive behavior is “recognizing yellow lights” — like lowered ears, dilated pupils or other signs indicating a dog is uncomfortable.
- Billionaire behind the scenes: If the White Sox succeed in getting the city and state to build them a new home in South Loop’s “The 78,” a little-known Iraqi billionaire stands to profit.
- High court bribery case could affect Illinois: Next week, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments on a case that could impact bribery cases in Illinois. For that reason, one judge delayed former Illinois House Speaker Michael J. Madigan’s trial, while a second put sentencing hearings on hold in a related bribery case involving the ComEd Four.
- Chicago’s Big Oil suit moves to federal court: A City Hall lawsuit blaming five oil industry giants for climate change damage then covering it up has been moved from state to federal court at the request of the companies.
- Uber calling a cab? Uber riders in Chicago are seeing a new option in the app: taxis. The ride-hailing company, which has long been blamed for a decline in taxi business, added the feature Thursday. But some Chicago cab drivers remain skeptical of the addition and bitter toward the company.
- Chesa Boudin looks back: Boudin, a former district attorney in San Francisco, is the subject of a new documentary that explores his life, from being raised by radicals in Hyde Park to being ousted from his post as San Francisco’s DA. He spoke with the Sun-Times about the film here.
- 3 stars for ‘The Sympathizer’: This seven-part series, based on Viet Thanh Nguyen’s 2015 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, boasts intriguing characters, glorious dialogue and lots of Robert Downey Jr., writes Sun-Times critic Richard Roeper.
WEEKEND PLANS 🎉
🎨 Expo Chicago
Through Sunday, 11 a.m.
📍Navy Pier, 600 E. Grand Ave.
This massive art show includes more than 170 contemporary and modern art galleries, plus a wide range of programming and installations.
Admission: $40+
📖 Paper or Plastic vintage sale
Through-Sunday, 12-6 p.m.
📍Third Season, 1516 W. Carroll Ave.
Stop by for this rare pop-up sale of curated vintage media featuring a “heavy emphasis on fiction, sci-fi, music, graphic arts, graffiti, movies, and more,” event organizers write.
Admission: Free
🖌️ The Other Art Fair
Friday, 5 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday 11 a.m.
📍Artifact Events, 4325 N. Ravenswood Ave.
This fair presents work by more than 110 emerging artists, plus interactive workshops, installations, DJ sets, an Art Swap Shop and more.
Admission $25+
🎥 Latino Film Festival
Through April 22
📍Landmark Century Cinema, 2828 N. Clark St.
Back for its 40th iteration, this festival has no shortage of thought-provoking films, with nearly 50 titles screening at Landmark Century Cinema, and select additional screenings at the Davis Theatre (4614 N. Lincoln Ave.) and Instituto Cervantes, 31 W. Ohio St.).
Admission: $15+
🍻 Northwest Brewfest
Saturday, 12 p.m.
📍Guild Row, 3130 N. Rockwell St.
Celebrate the Northwest Side’s beer scene with this event showcasing local brewers and their work. Sample delicious brews and meet the people behind them.
Admission: $45+
🎤 Chance the Rapper
Saturday, 6 p.m.
📍Ramova Theatre, 3520 S. Halsted St.
The Chicago-born musician headlines a benefit concert for his nonprofit SocialWorks, which works to empower youth through the arts, education and civic engagement.
Admission: $99.50+
BRIGHT ONE ✨
Gail Wise bought the first Ford Mustang sold in the United States; 60 years later, she still owns it
Reporting by Neil Steinberg
In the spring of 1964, Gail Wise taught third grade at Sunnyside Elementary School in Berkeley, Illinois, a small suburb just east of Elmhurst. She was still Gail Brown then, loved her job, but it was a dozen miles south from where she lived with her parents in Park Ridge.
At 22 years old, she couldn’t expect to drive her parents’ car forever. She needed her own. So on Wednesday, April 15, 1964, she and her father went to Johnson Ford on Cicero Avenue in Chicago — her family always drove Fords.
“My parents always drove a convertible,” she said. “I just knew I wanted a convertible.”
But there were no convertibles on the showroom floor. When the salesman saw Brown’s disappointment, he took pity on her and said they had something special in back. They weren’t supposed to sell it yet, but she could take a look. He pulled a tarp off a Mustang convertible in “Skylight Blue.” No Mustangs would officially go on sale for two days, until after it was unveiled at the New York World’s Fair on April 17. If she wanted this one, she’d have to buy it without a test drive. She did want it.
“I just fell in love. It was sporty. It had the bucket seats, the transmission on the floor,” she said. “He started it up. It went zoom zoom and made that nice, loud noise. I was just so excited to buy it. I was in heaven. I told the salesman it was for me.”
The price was $3,447.50. Her salary was $5,000 a year. Her father loaned her the money, making Gail Wise the first person in the United States to buy a Ford Mustang — 60 years ago on Monday.
“When I drove out of the showroom, nobody had seen this car yet,” she recalled. “Everybody was waving at me, asking me to slow down, so they could see this car. I felt like a movie star. I was very happy.”
A few years later, she married Tom Wise, an electronics technician in 1966. The car would continue to be part of their everyday life — before the harsh Chicago winters turned it into a refurbishing project for Tom.
Read the full story of Gail Wise’s 60 years of Mustang ownership here or via the button below.
YOUR DAILY QUESTION ☕️
Have you ever owned a Ford Mustang or another classic sports car? What year and type? What’s your favorite memory of it?
Email us (please include your first and last name). To see the answers to this question, check our Morning Edition newsletter. Not subscribed to Morning Edition? Sign up here so you won’t miss a thing!
ONE MORE THING 🤔
Now that you’ve flexed your voting muscles in the primary, this month, we invite you to cast your vote in the Chicago Showdown — a charmingly low-stakes bracket where YOU determine the ultimate champion of Chicago.
Chicago boasts numerous icons, but only one will emerge victorious in the Chicago Showdown.
Cast your vote through April 19 to help us determine which Chicago icon will reign supreme.
Thanks for reading the Sun-Times Afternoon Edition.
Got a story you think we missed? Email us here.
Editor: Satchel Price
Newsletter reporter: Matt Moore
Copy editor: Angie Myers
