November 1 -7, 2023 Vol. 31 No. 44
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4 Arts & Entertainment 6 SportsWise
Event highlights of the week!
The SportsWise team discusses an exciting time of year for fans of all sports.
8 Cover Story: Native American Curriculum
November concludes the traditional harvest and is also a time of thanksgiving, so Congress chose it in 1990 as Native American Heritage Month, according to the Library of Congress. The Illinois General Assembly enacted a law this August that will mandate Native American studies in middle school and high school curricula. "Respect for those who came before us and those who will come after—that is why we want to teach our children this history, to avoid the mistakes of the past," Gov. JB Pritzker said at the bill's signing.
12 inside streetwise 15 The Playground
Paying tribute to StreetWise Vendor Merv Sims.
ON THE COVER: "Mshike Kowabtan (Turtle Guardian)" by Monica Rickert-Bolter (Potawatomi/Black), 2022. THIS PAGE: The bronze statue of Hononegah at Hononegah Community High School in Rockton was dedicated Oct. 23, 2022 (Rockton-Roscoe News photo). DISCLAIMER: The views, opinions, positions or strategies expressed by the authors and those providing comments are theirs alone, and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, or positions of StreetWise.
Dave Hamilton, Creative Director/Publisher
dhamilton@streetwise.org
StreetWiseChicago @StreetWise_CHI
Suzanne Hanney, Editor-In-Chief
suzannestreetwise@yahoo.com
Amanda Jones, Director of programs
ajones@streetwise.org
Julie Youngquist, Executive director
jyoungquist@streetwise.org
Ph: 773-334-6600 Office: 2009 S. State St., Chicago, IL, 60616
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ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT RECOMMENDATIONS Compiled by Mary Mathieu
A Chicago Classic!
Deeply Rooted Dance Theater Chicago’s Deeply Rooted Dance Theater reimagines and diversifies the aesthetics of contemporary dance by uniting modern, classical, American, and African American traditions in dance and storytelling. Deeply Rooted collaborates with nationally renowned choreographers across the spectrum of modern, ballet, and African dance to reflect contemporary voices. Joining Deeply Rooted on the historic stage of the Auditorium Theatre, 50 E. Ida B. Wells Drive, is Sam Thousand and his super-ensemble of musicians and singers for a performance on November 3 at 7:30 p.m. that reflects contemporary voices, sparks a visceral experience, and ignites an emotional response. Tickets are $25+ at auditoriumtheatre.org
Historical & Musical!
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
On-Site Live Performance: “Vilna: A Resistance Story” “Vilna: A Resistance Story,” a captivating sell-out musical inspired by one of the most powerful Yiddish anthems of the Holocaust, “Zog Nit Keinmol,” makes its way to the Illinois Holocaust Museum, 9603 Woods Drive on November 2 at 6:30 p.m. for a live performance before heading to New York City. This previously untold story intertwines multiple inspiring true stories of heroes from the Vilna Ghetto who rose up, fought back, and did all they could to preserve Jewish culture for future generations. Following the performance will be a roundtable discussion with Vilna songwriter Kevin Cloud, producer Lisa Kenner Grissom, and Kelley Szany, Illinois Holocaust Museum’s senior vice president of education & exhibitions. The conversation will be moderated by Hannah Edgar, Chicago Tribune Music Critic. Free with admission, but RSVP required at illinoisholocaustmuseum.org
Original Influencers!
Gilded Age Influencers: American Women and French Fashion Inspired by the return of HBO’s “The Gilded Age” this fall, art historian Elizabeth Block will describe the wealthy Gilded Age American women who bolstered the French fashion industry with a steady stream of orders. Countering the usual narrative of the designer as solo creative genius, attendees will hear how these women as high volume customers and as pre-internet influencers were active participants in the era’s transnational fashion system. This event is located at the Driehaus Museum, 40 E. Erie St. on November 3 at 6 p.m. Tickets are $10+ at driehausmuseum.org
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Ancient Colors!
Lecture: Pliny, Pigments, and Painters in the Ancient World Join Hilary Becker, a renowned authority on ancient pigments, as she discusses her research on “Pliny the Elder’s Naturalis Historia or Natural History” (77 CE) on November 9 at 6 p.m. Becker studied the ancient Roman text seeking insight into artisanal materials commonly used by artists of the time, like gold foil, Egyptian blue, and shellfish purple. In her discussion of this research at the Art Institute of Chicago, 111 S. Michigan Ave., Becker shares what Pliny can tell us about the marketing and use of pigments during this period of Roman history before sitting down with conversation scientist Giovanni Verri and curator Katharine Raff to search the museum’s collection for traces of ancient color. To register for this event visit artic.edu
Our Man Tweedy!
WBEZ Presents: World Within a Song - An Evening of Words and Music with Jeff Tweedy Jeff Tweedy’s songwriting has woven itself tightly into the lives of his fans around the world. Tweedy will be joined by Peter Sagal, host of NPR’s “Wait Wait… Don’t Tell Me,” on November 5 at 7 p.m. for an intimate conversation about the transformative power of music, with Tweedy performing a few acoustic selections from his vast catalog. All ticket holders will receive a pre-signed copy of “World Within A Song: Music That Changed My Life and Life That Changed My Music” before its release November 7. Tickets can be purchased at athenaeumcenter.org for $60+. This conversation and performance will be at the Athenaeum Theatre, 2936 N. Southport Ave.
Sparkle & Shine!
Fall Golden Hour Photo Walk Meet at the Maker Lab at the Harold Washington Library Center, 400 S. State St., at 3 p.m. on November 6 for a brief introduction to understanding camera exposure, lighting, and composition. Enjoy a leisurely stroll around the Loop and nearby parks after the presentation to peep some fall colors and discover how the golden hour before sunset can help create beautiful portraits, landscapes, and more. Participants are encouraged to bring their own camera or phone. Library staff will provide a few cameras and lenses to share during the program.
Getting To Know You!
DEPTH Join the Chicago Sinfonietta for an evening of musical exploration with DEPTH on November 5 at 3 p.m. featuring renowned guest conductor Carlos Miguel Prieto and a lineup of works that delve into the complexities of the human experience. Throughout the concert at the Auditorium Theatre, 50 E. Ida B. Wells Drive. The Chicago Sinfonietta will explore the depths of the human experience through music, showcasing the power and beauty of artistic expression. Tickets are $25+ at auditoriumtheatre.org
Be Nice To Each Other!
Kind Words II Join the You Are Beautiful Gallery, 3368 N. Elston Ave. on November 4 at 6 p.m. for an uplifting and free event. Kind Words II is all about spreading positivity and love. Come and connect with likeminded individuals who believe in the power of kind words. Expect heartwarming conversations, inspiring stories, and a supportive community. Artists, designers, and creatives will be sharing their most inspiring kind words on the walls of the gallery. The studio and wood shop will be open to the public during the event.
Jam Band!
Edgewater Community Music Jam Join the Edgewater Chicago Public Library Branch, 6000 N. Broadway, for a community music jam sessions for musicians of all levels who play acoustic instruments. Participants also may be singers and listeners. Sessions will be one hour and include group playing, solo playing, and social time. This session will be led by Mike Kennedy, a musician and retired music and technology teacher, on November 2 at 4 p.m. To register for this event visit chipublib.com
Native American History Month!
Black Hawk Performance Company Join Chicago’s Black Hawk Performance Company on November 2 at 6 p.m. for a special evening. Named after the great Sauk Chief Black Hawk, the company seeks to honor the ground we dance on, Mother Earth, and the many tribes who have made Illinois their home. Learn about American Indian people through music and dance with this group made up of intergenerational performers co-sponsored by the American Indian Association of Illinois. This event is located at the Harold Washington Library Center, 400 S. State St.
www.streetwise.org
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Vendors (l-r) A. Allen, Russell Adams and John Hagan chat about the world of sports.
A World of Sports Happenings
SPORTSWISE
John: Today, we see a smorgasbord of sports happening this month. The NFL and college football are getting ready to reach the midway point. Major League Baseball is winding down to the World Series. Pro basketball is on the horizon, and the NHL just started its regular season. A. Allen: I think the Chicago Bears have a lot of potential with Justin Field; they just need more players on the field who can back him up. The general manager Ryan Poles has some decisions to make because we can’t continue on this losing streak with such a good quarterback. Not a lot of people see Fields as a good quarterback, but I do because all of the losses were due to the defense not slowing the other team down. I hope Fields and the GM can make the right decisions and turn the Bears around to become a winning team, which I think they can do.
Russell: The Bears are talking about trading some defensive backs and making a change. Jaylen Johnson and Eddie Jackson are both on the injured reserve list. There’s talk about trading them for cornerbacks, but they’re both sidelined now. Everything hinges on Chicago’s future games because they have got to win. They need to come up out of this slump. We all know that the Dallas Cowboys are overrated. But the Houston Texans have rookie quarterback CJ Stroud, who went his first five games without an interception. He also set a record for most consecutive pass attempts without an interception, 177. Now that is a remarkable feat!
Mahomes (QB) has become my favorite football player to watch; he has done so many things well. What Kansas City has got to do, in order to repeat as champions, is that they’ve got to stop messing around and start getting on the ball with playing football. I don’t think there’s many teams that can beat them. Maybe San Francisco 49ers or Philadelphia Eagles or, believe it or not, the Detroit Lions. What an amazing story there. Back in the day, they were the joke of the league. Now, they’re not only the team to beat in the NFC North, they may also be representing the NFC in the SuperBowl. Now how’s that for turning the world upside down?!
John: The Kansas City Chiefs have got to step up their offense. They've been finding ways to win games, but they've been very sluggish. It's been disappointing to me because the Chiefs’ Patrick
A. Allen: The one thing I’m more interested in than anything else is the NBA. Point guard Drew Holiday joined forces with small forwards Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum on the Boston Celt-
ics. It takes pressure off of Tatum, and Brown’s been sloppy with the ball at times. The Celtics look like the best team in the NBA so far. But don't forget that paper does not win championships. Russell: This is going to be an exciting time to watch baseball. The final four include the Texas Rangers, the Houston Astros, the Philadelphia Phillies, and the Arizona Diamondbacks. The one thing I'm disappointed with is that they are mostly wildcard teams, and it seems like mediocrity is being rewarded.
Any comments, suggestions or topic ideas for the SportsWise team? Email StreetWise Editor Suzanne Hanney at suzannestreetwise@yahoo.com
Native American Curriculum introduced Across Illinois by Suzanne Hanney
“As educators, we have spent our whole lives waiting for such legislation,” Dorene Wiese, PhD. said of a state law enacted this past August that will mandate a Native American curriculum in Illinois social studies classes from middle school through high school. “It’s amazing that it happened at this time,” Dr. Wiese said as moderator of a September 27 panel at the Harold Washington Library about the curriculum, which will begin with the 202425 school year. “There’s so much that brought us to this point. We stand on the shoulders of our elders. They suffered so much to get us to this time.”
COVER STORY
Dr. Wiese is founding president of the American Indian Association of Illinois (which co-sponsored the panel), an enrolled member of the Minnesota White Earth Ojibwe, and CEO/professor emeritus of NAES, Inc. (formerly NAES College). She has a master’s degree from the University of Chicago and a doctorate in education from Northern Illinois University. Her life’s work has been advocating for urban American Indian education and Urban Native health. She was the first American Indian appointed to the Cook County Health and Hospital Systems board and the highest ranking American Indian Illinois Community College administrator in a 20-year career there.
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Co-panelist Clovia Malatare said she hoped the curriculum would describe Native American resilience, “the true history of Native Americans, how we are still here and survived in spite of the barriers to stay true to our identity as Native Americans.” Malatare is an Oglala Lakota elder, an adult educator, a public school parent and grandparent and faculty emeritus at NAES College. She was the first Native person to receive a master’s degree in public health from the University of IllinoisChicago, and served for over 22 years as a manager, in the audit section, Office of the Inspector General, State of Illinois. Malatare said her second concern is, “what are the things we want our children to learn and non-Natives to learn.” Introduced into the Illinois General Assembly by State Rep. Maurice A. West II, an African American Democrat from Rockton, the legislation will require instruction in Native American history in every course pertaining to American history or government. Topics will include the genocide and discrimination against Native Americans, as well as tribal sovereignty, treaties made between tribal nations and the United States, and circumstances around forced Native American relocation. The
instruction may be included with material on the Holocaust and genocides. The State Board of Education will develop the curriculum in consultation with a Native American community chosen by the individual school districts. “This is the culmination of an effort that took many months and was the hope and dream of countless Illinois American Indian residents over many years,” Andrew Johnson, executive director of the Native American Chamber of Commerce of Illinois, said in a news release. “We feel this history will now include perspectives from our vantage point through resources that have been properly vetted by leading Native American scholars.” West told WREX in Rockford that the bill started with a student movement at Hononegah High School to change its Indian mascot. He filed a mascot bill, but federally-recognized tribal members throughout Illinois told him to go bigger. Hononegah High School was named for Ho-no-ne-gah, the HoChunk/Potawatomi wife of Stephen Mack Jr., founder of the town of Rockton. (1) "Today, we take another step forward in repairing generations of harm and building a brighter future for our state's Native American and Indigenous Peoples," Gov JB Pritzker said at the August 4 signing ceremony. "At its core, this legislation is about respect. Respect for those who came before us and those who will come after—and that is why we want to teach our children this history, to avoid the mistakes of the past and to instill that respect from an early age." According to the legislation, curriculum will encompass not only Native American contributions and self-determination but, “Native American history within the Midwest and the state since time immemorial.” That’s good news for Fawn Pochel, the third member of the Harold Washington panel. Pochel is First Nations Coordinator of Gender & Sexuality; Indigenous/Native American Community Relations at the Angelina Pedroso Center for Diversity and Intercultural Affairs at Northeastern Illinois University. She is the first Native Grow Your Own Teacher candidate at NEIU and the first Native master’s degree candidate. She is a cofounder of Chi-Nations and founder of the First Nations Garden in Albany Park.
(1)
m
Similar to the Potawatomi wife of Chicago founder Jean Baptiste Pointe du Sable, Ho-no-ne-gah was the HoChunk/Potawatomi wife of Stephen Mack Jr., founder of Rockton, IL, the first permanent settlement in Winnebago County. Born in 1814 in the Four Lake Region (present-day Madison, WI), Ho-no-ne-gah married Mack as a young girl. She raised nine children, opened their home to fur traders and local travelers, and used healing plants on them when necessary. A century ago, Hononegah High School was named after her, and in 2022, the community unveiled a 6-foot bronze statue in her honor. The bronze statue of Hononegah at Hononegah Community High School in Rockton was dedicated Oct. 23, 2022 (Rockton-Roscoe News photo).
“The first thing is, teachers should throw away lesson plans about the ‘land bridge,’ because we all have stories about our own creation,” Pochel said. “Those are the stories that need to be uplifted. I am not interested if Western science says our creation stories can be proven.” An old archeological theory was that, 13,000 years ago, people we now know as Native Americans walked or came by boat from Asia across land that is now the Bering Sea and then moved south. But in the last two decades, new research says that their settlements in North America are much older than the land bridge would allow. Pochel is grateful to have been born in Chicago, the ancestral home of her father, who was a Woodland Cree member of the Swan River First Nation in Manitoba. She described deep psychic ties to this land to the Harold Washington audience. “The Great Lakes has sustained us since time immemorial,” she said.
removal of Native Americans and other groups from their homes.” Malatare wants the curriculum to cover how Native Americans lost their land, treaties, and how the government tried to kill Indians. “It was genocide. They gave them blankets for smallpox. That was the reason they killed all the buffalo, to get rid of the Indians. In the end it was all about the land – the precious land.” A Google search of “Native Americans given blankets that induced smallpox” calls up multiple links, starting in 1763, after the French and Indian War, which the French lost. As the victorious British expanded their military presence in the Great Lakes, Chief Pontiac fought back and won smaller forts – until he reached Fort Pitt (the present-day Pittsburgh).
The Great Lakes and the Chicago River system facilitated travel and trade for 150 tribes speaking 200 languages – and by the 1600s, for Europeans too. “Chicago was developed to spread west across the Mississippi River,” Pochel said. “Think of Manifest Destiny, the railroads. They were all centered in Chicago. The waterways gave access to trade."
Smallpox had broken out among the British soldiers, and during peace talks, the British commanding officer of Fort Pitt gave Lenape (Delaware) warriors several items taken from smallpox patients, according to history.net. “We gave them two blankets and a handkerchief out of the smallpox hospital,” Capt. William Trent of the garrison militia wrote in his journal. “I hope it will have the desired effect.” The idea was ratified by Lord Jeffrey Amherst, the commander of British forces in North America.
“Manifest Destiny,” however, was deliberately harmful to Native Americans. Coined in 1845, the phrase embodied the idea that the United States was “destined – by God, its advocates believed – to expand its dominion and spread democracy and capitalism across the entire North American continent,” according to history.com. “The philosophy drove 19th century U.S. territorial expansion and was used to justify the forced
A smallpox epidemic in 1837-38 killed anywhere from 17,200 to 150,000 Mandans on the upper Missouri River. A University of Michigan study, however, said that there was no evidence blankets were shipped there from a military smallpox infirmary in St. Louis. Instead, the source may have been a blanket from an infected worker on a steamboat that docked there. An Indian Bureau subagent even suggested an aggressive inocuwww.streetwise.org
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(2)
The two-part, four-hour series "The American Buffalo" by documentarian Ken Burns traces the buffalo’s evolution through more than 10,000 years of American history, alongside Native people who used the animal for food and shelter. Because of their reliance on the buffalo, Native peoples revered it to the point of kinship. Driven nearly extinct in the industrial age, the buffalo has been brought back today. The message of the series is, how do we live with the natural world, said filmmaker Julie Dunfey. Photo courtesy of PBS.
lation program to prevent spread of the disease, according to a paper by an assistant professor of sociology at Lamar University.
with the grazing needs of settlers’ cattle, according to Texas Monthly, and their hides were also sought-after for belts used in machinery.
Regardless, “smallpox in the blankets” is a legend that “can’t be dismissed because it is founded in a mixture of limited historical fact and widespread circumstantial evidence,” according to history.net. It remains a powerful, negative thread in Native American memory.
Most of all, U.S. Army policy used intentional slaughter for Manifest Destiny. Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan wrote to a subordinate in October 1868 that their best hope to control Native Americans was “to make them poor by the destruction of their stock, and then settle them on the lands allotted to them,” according to Pochel and Karina L. Walters, Ph.D, of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma and the Indigenous Wellness Research Institute at the University of Washington.
“Unintentional contagion was common, particularly in wartime,” according to scholar Elizabeth A. Fenn. “By the second half of the 18th century, many of the combatants in America’s wars of empire had the knowledge and technology to attempt biological warfare with the smallpox virus.” For all these reasons, smallpox contagion may have been more common than has been acknowledged, Fenn wrote. Mass killing of the buffalo was equally destructive to Native Americans, Dr. Wiese said. “One buffalo could feed a whole village for the winter, and then that protein source was gone.” She referred to an upcoming Ken Burns documentary on the decimation of buffalo herds to the brink of extinction. (2) Native Americans used the buffalo not only for food, but for clothing, tools and shelter. Yet the massive animals competed
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In winter 1883-84, when the buffalo slaughter was at its peak, an estimated 10 percent of Plains Native Americans died of malnutrition and disease, according to Texas Monthly. Even when Native Americans relocated to land they thought would be undesirable to whites, they lost out. The Osage Indians moved from Kansas to a rocky part of northeast Oklahoma – and then oil was discovered there, Dr. Wiese noted. She was awaiting a movie on the subject, “Killers of the Flower Moon,” directed by Martin Scorsese and featuring Leonardo di Caprio and Robert DeNiro, which was due in theaters October 20. (3)
(3)
Based on journalist David Grann's best-selling book, "Killers of the Flower Moon: the Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI," the film is set in 1920s Oklahoma, after oil is discovered on the tribe’s land. Whites resent their sudden wealth, which they can attain only through marriage and inheritance. Suddenly Osage begin to die mysteriously in a string of brutal crimes. JaNae Collins, Lily Gladstone, Cara Jade Myers, Jillian Dion in “Killers of the Flower Moon” (Melinda Sue Gordon photo).
Education was also used as a means of annihilating Native American culture and language. “Children were forcibly taken from their homes and not allowed to see their parents for many years,” Dr. Wiese said. Malatare was sent from the Pine Ridge, S.D. reservation to a boarding school where she was not allowed to speak her Native language. Pochel’s father was taken by the Canadian government, sent to a variety of boys’ schools, and then adopted out to a farm family in Normal, IL. He made his way to Chicago in the late 1970s. In the 1950s, Congress began to end federal obligations to tribes – and actually terminated some tribes. The government also began to relocate people from reservations and villages to urban areas for training and employment. Because Chicago had a lot of unskilled factory jobs, it became a center for Urban Natives.
can Indian community than support: for employment, economic development, seniors.” Dr. Wiese started the first Native adult learning center in Chicago, which was copied across the U.S. Since she had relatives who had dropped out of school, she knew what they needed, she said. Getting an education was not easy for any of the women, but Dr. Wiese said she and Malatare had it easier than their parents’ generation. Still, 50 years later, Pochel is, as Dr. Wiese was, one of just seven Native American students at Northeastern Illinois University.
“The reason we had any education here was because of federal funding. It was a way to keep people here so the government could take the land,” Dr. Wiese said. “It’s always been about the land.”
Pochel attended Chicago Public Schools from pre-K through middle school and then high school in predominantly white northwest Indiana, where she relied on her mother’s mostly Irish heritage. Terming herself “pretty much done with education,” she moved back to Chicago to spend eight years working with different Native American organizations, determined to hold onto her father’s Native American culture. She took seven years to get her bachelor’s degree and credits the local nonprofit Grow Your Own Teachers and Ebony DeBerry at ONE Northside for seeing her through it. Now she is working on her master’s degree.
Once here, the community “put together building blocks for their survival,” she said. “No thread runs deeper in the Ameri-
Pochel has never had a Native American teacher, but she said she hopes the new legislation will create a pipeline for them. www.streetwise.org
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remembering vendor merv sims by Suzanne Hanney & A. Allen
Mervyn Sims Jr. was a StreetWise vendor from its very beginnings over 30 years ago, when the newspaper was headquartered at 13th and Wabash. StreetWise Vendor Joe Jones remembers Sims as “always a go-getter” and “a very cool vendor.”
Top Row: Merv Sims, Suzanne Hanney, and vendor Dean Smith visit a White Sox game (Amanda Jones photo); Sims (Suzanne Hanney photo). Bottom Row: Sims (center) with Alanna Sims (left) and Makayla Sims (right); Left ot right: Jacorian Jones, Mervyn Sims III, MaKayla Sims, Mervyn Sims Jr., Alanna Sims, Marlene Sims, Alexis Sims, Giamiah Gods, Lygia Winters, and Mervyn Sims IV in front; Rozalyn Sims, Mervyn Sims, Marlene Sims (photos provided by the family of Merv Sims).
“Merv was a good vendor, who was always in an upbeat mood,” said Ron Madere, StreetWise Magazine sales coordinator. Merv worked at Old St. Patrick’s Church, 700 W. Adams St.; at Old St. Mary’s, 1500 S. Michigan Ave.; and at the Starbuck’s at Madison & Franklin. Madere said Merv is “gone but not forgotten. He’s StreetWise’s finest, a trailblazer for all vendors.” “Merv owned the spot at Franklin and Madison,” said longtime customer and friend Sharon O’Brien. “There’s a Starbuck’s there and all the other StreetWise vendors knew that was Merv’s spot. He was there when everyone was taking their first coffee break and often during the early commuter rush back to the Metra trains. Because that was a thoroughfare, all the people going to the train would say, ‘Good evening, Merv.’ I believe I met Merv in 2007 or 2008. And one Sunday evening he showed up at Old St. Pat’s after 5 o’clock mass. He made the same friendships. He was at Old St. Mary’s in the morning and would come to Old St. Patrick at the start of 5 o’clock mass and wait ’til mass got out. Invariably one of us from church would give him a ride to the Red Line.” He had lived in a men’s hotel on South Clark Street and since COVID, he stayed with family.
INSIDE STREETWISE
What made him special?
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“He just showed up every day,” O’Brien said. “It was his job and he took it very seriously and he was just such a friendly guy. Everybody knew him. He had endeared himself so much with the 5 o’clock mass crowd that people would give him things oftentimes or invite him into the parish hall for monthly dinners.” Merv, will in fact, be remembered in the Old St. Pat’s annual mass of remembrance at 1 p.m. Sunday, November 5 (preceded by 12:30 p.m. candlelighting) and will also be remembered at Old St. Mary’s. StreetWise Vendor Russell Adams was friends with Merv for about 15 years. When they met, Merv was a StreetWise vendor and Russell was a bike messenger. Russell lost his job and Merv invited him to StreetWise to become a vendor. They turned out to be neighbors, living only about two blocks apart.
“Merv has always been a nice guy, and minded his business. He never was a problem, and was an easy-going guy,” StreetWise Vendor Keith Hardiman said. Mervyn Sims, Jr. was born Feb. 11, 1954 in Chicago and graduated from Farragut High School. Merv was an umpire and was one of the best teachers of baseball, where he brought the block together. (“Let’s play ball!”) Mervyn was a man of many trades. Being a StreetWise vendor was his most recent occupation. Mervyn was a loving, caring, and supportive husband to Janet Wright Sims, who preceded him in death in 1997. He was a wonderful father of four to Rashad Wilborn, Rozalyn Sims (Jeffery), Marlene Sims-Jones (Lazarus), Mervyn Sims III (Ebony) whom he loved deeply and leaves to cherish his memories forever. He was a grandfather; a brother to Vivian,
Karvin, and Ryan; an uncle who loved his nieces and nephews as if they were his own children. “The best man,” and “best friend to everyone,” “someone who finds lessons in almost every experience,” was how his niece Kenya Ivory described him. “He was the ‘man’ in our family. The best uncle that a little girl could have. He had knowledge and shared it about the things he was passionate about.” Kenya described him as “the fun uncle,” but also, “the rock of the family,” “a caring, sharing and compassionate person who loved his children and grandchildren.” He gathered all the neighborhood kids together and kept them busy, usually with baseball. “His voice was the voice of authority. He did not mince words. He will live through us all.”
His daughter Marlene thanks “everybody who loved her Daddy. Just know he loved everybody! When you think about him, smile, because he was a light that shined bright.” “All I want to say is that my dad was loved,” said daughter Rozalyn, “and that I want everyone to be aware and make sure they get tested for colonoscopy and take care of their health.” Mervyn has left us, but we at StreetWise remember him to be a great, wise, and kind man. He departed this life on August 28 at 4 a.m., only to start a new beginning. He fought the fight of a good soldier. There is always a light that will shine bright in our hearts for him because his spirit shone bright. We pray that God will bless him and keep him in his next journey. Go Merv, go! We miss you and love you. Rest in Peace. – Sarah Luczko contributing
www.streetwise.org
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1 to 9.
e 10/15/23 Sudoku
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Streetwise 10/15/23 Crossword
Sudoku To solve the Sudoku puzzle, each row, column and box must contain the numbers 1 to 9.
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5 Milky-white gem 6 Fowl pole? 8 Pugilist’s weapon 9 Loathsome 0 Walking ___ 1 2004 Brad Pitt film 2 Scored on serve 3 Track event
8 Where Pago 39 Be decisive Pago is 43 Trading place 9 Cry’s partner 45 Brass 10 One thing after component another 46 Period in the 11 Field yield earth’s history 12 Fluish feeling 47 Chinese 13 “___ a chance” dynasty name 22 Optimistic 50 Delicate 24 Literary piece 52 Panic 26 Delay 54 Savory jelly 27 Audition tapes 55 Embrocated 28 Proclamation wn 56 Mideast chief 1 Wide of the 29 Former 57 Mexican mark Portuguese moolah 2 Gad about province 59 Curly cabbage 3 Voice below 30 King of Judah 61 First-rate soprano 32 Imperial decree 62 Hockey score 4 Make-up artist? 33 Rivulets 63 Part of SEATO 34 Ant, in dialect 5 Grave 64 Poetic adverb 6 Morning words 37 Tea server 65 Egg cells 7 DoD inits. 38 Waikiki wear 67 Attempt Copyright ©2023 PuzzleJunction.com
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Crossword
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Across 1 Rubs out 5 Swizzle ___ 10 Impetuous 14 Venus de ___ 15 Lock horns 16 Orbison tune, “___ the Lonely” 17 “Terrible” czar 18 Add up 19 Straddling 20 Garland locale 22 Camp sack 23 Complain 24 Brownstones, e.g. 27 Biographical bit 30 Author Harper 31 Fled ©2023 PuzzleJunction.com 32 Commercials 35 Bullfight 8 Refinement 57 Birth-related 38 Symbol of 37 Pregnancy 9 Pivotal 61 Roll call might type 10 Surf sounds misser 42 Thickness 39 Underway 62 Cacophony 11 Voting “no” 43 See 50 Across 40 Cocoon 64 Start of a cheer 12 Hogwash 44 With high contents 65 Show’s partner 13 Hoopla hopes 41 Railway 21 Precious stone 45 Kind of code 66 Chimes station porters 67 Gulf port 23 Nice guy 50 To the hilt 44 Hebrew 25 Amalgamate 68 Creative 51 African prophet 26 Fluid container 69 Collar inserts antelope 46 High dudgeon 70 Harp’s cousin 27 Mite 52 Like some 47 Class 28 Errand runner forces 48 Ambition 29 Weaken Down 53 Pro follower 49 It was 32 Patriots’ Day 1 Exclude 54 Still-life subject dropped in the 2 Take ___ month 55 Electrical unit 60’s 33 Takes to the 3 Plant fiber 58 Fastidious 50 Kitchen 4 Navigational water 59 Say for sure cooker 34 Burn with hot 60 Track aid 53 Musical show water 5 Gained a lap assignment 56 Heavy-duty 36 Big bird of 6 Windpipe 62 Air rifle ammo cleanser stories 7 Block house? 63 Slalom curve
at www.streetwise.org
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Buy the -orMagazine, Take the Magazine Vendors purchase When you buy the magazine, take the the magazine for $1.15 and sell it for magazine, and read the $3 plus tips. The vendor keeps all of magazine, you are supporting our their earnings. microentrepreneurs earning an income with dignity.
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LEADER LUNCHEON 2023 NOV 16
For nearly 150 years, YWCA Metropolitan Chicago has been here to support, uplift and unleash the full potential of every woman, child and family across the region. With its long-held mission to eliminate racism and empower women, the YWCA is building a more Equitable Future. This year, our Leader Luncheon honorees are changing policies, breaking the rules and speaking truth to power in the spirit of creating more Equitable Futures for us all.
OUTSTANDING LEADER IN BUSINESS Kathy Bolhous, Chairman & CEO, Charter Next Generation
OUTSTANDING CIVIC LEADER Cristina Pacione-Zayas, PhD, First Deputy Chief of Staff, City of Chicago
OUTSTANDING LEADER IN RACIAL JUSTICE
OUTSTANDING YOUTH LEADER
Tracie Hall, Executive Director, American Library Association
The Pierce Twins, Kyra & Phallon Pierce
To learn more about this year’s remarkable honorees and to RSVP visit ywcachicago.org/leaderluncheon
