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Oscar Antonio Rivera Jr.—whom I interviewed for this year’s People Issue, published today—runs Bikes N’ Roses, a bicycle mechanic program for youth in Albany Park. Or at least he’s trying to. The program has been endangered ever since its summer funding ran out, and he’s been scrambling to try to find grants or other sources of funding. To that end, Bikes N’ Roses is hosting a fund-raiser this Saturday from 6 to 10 PM at its storefront (4749 N. Kedzie), appropriately titled Beer N’ Bikes. Revolution Brewing has donated beer that will be for sale at the event, and there will be a couple of live bands (Cebolla Municipal and Tarnation) and a photo booth. Admission is $10, and the event is 21+.
How do I get by? I don’t. I have a huge bag of rice and lots of beans. My savings is about $45 at the moment. I’m selling one of my two bicycles—the Cross-Check—to get me covered for next month’s bills and hoping more funding finds its way to Bikes N’ Roses after that.
