FEBRUARY 7, 2018
News
PAGE 3
Cunneen’s brings students, locals together CARLY BEHM cbehm@luc.edu
When Bill Savage, a literature professor at Northwestern University, was an undergraduate student at Loyola University, he frequented Cunneen’s, a small bar located at 1424 W. Devon Ave. Savage, who used to write for The Phoenix, worked as a bartender at Cunneen’s for 27 years through 2015 and said the place has since remained a quiet neighborhood bar. “Cunneen’s has changed in a lot of ways but it’s been the same in more ways,” Savage, 55, said. “It’s still the kind of mellow, laid back [place]. No one yells at each other. There’s no fights; there’s no nonsense.” The bar’s been a staple in Rogers Park for more than 40 years. It was founded by owner Stephen Cunneen, now 83, in 1972. Cunneen can be found at the bar each day around 1 p.m., solving his crossword puzzle — a ritual he’s done for nearly a decade. Since then, Cunneen’s has several residential regulars that still stay loyal to it. Some Loyola students also choose the bar over closer options, such as Bar 63 on North Broadway Street and Bulldog Ale House on North Sheridan Road. Loyola senior Mary Anne Lurquin said she prefers Cunneen’s for its mix of clientele. “I think it’s really cool because it’s a mixture of much older Rogers Park residents, and then you have Loyola students,” the 21-year-old sociology major said. “It’s a nice mesh to see how such a typical neighborhood place with college kids still come to as well.” The bar is softly lit with string lights lining the walls and ceiling. A pool table sits toward the back, and customers can play a game for 50 cents. Classic rock and jazz music serves as a backdrop to customers’ conversations, but it isn’t too loud. In one corner by the window, cozy chairs offer a soft seat for customers
Carly Behm The PHOENIX
Carly Behm The PHOENIX
Stephen Cunneen opened his namesake bar on Devon Avenue in Rogers Park in 1972, more than 40 years ago. Some of its original customers still frequent the bar.
Bill Savage (left) graduated from Loyola and wrote for The Phoenix. He went to Cunneen’s during college and served as a bartender there for almost three decades.
to relax or study. A full bar offers an array of beers and liquors. The cash-only bar sells bottles of beer starting as low as $2.50, and the most expensive drinks cost $4.75. Drinks at other nearby bars and restaurants start at $4 and cost as much as $7. There are also records behind the bar to play music off of. Dogs are allowed in the bar except after 6:30 p.m. on Thursdays, according to the bar’s website. When The Phoenix spoke with Cunneen, he was seated at the bar with his glasses, a notepad and a copy of the Chicago Sun-Times. A green crew neck shirt sat comfortably on his body, and his left ring finger was in a splint. He has a welcoming gaze and a warm smile. Cunneen said he conceived the idea to buy a bar with his friends back when he was a graduate student. However, Cunneen was the only one of the group to seek a location and buy it. The space was previously a bar called Down the Street. “I went back to my pals and one of them was married, and his wife said no,” Cunneen said. “Another guy was engaged, and his girlfriend said no. So I came up here and negotiated with
the guy [and] paid $5,750 to take over.” In its first years, Cunneen dedicated his time to the bar. He refurbished it with a new ceiling and new tiling in the bathroom. Cunneen said he’s a woodworker and made the tables and lamps in the bar himself. Most of the bar’s furnishings are original, except for the ceiling and one wall, according to Cunneen. Cunneen said the bar’s ceiling caved in 2013 when the tenants living above had their water overflow, with the bar having to close for two months. Cunneen said he was at the bar with the bartender and a customer when it happened. “We heard a noise. The girl behind the bar, she ducked down. Me and another guy were near the door so nobody got hurt, but it was a mess,” Cunneen said. Sunni Lindahl, 68, said she’s been going to Cunneen’s since its opening in 1972. Lindahl said she met her late husband, Leo, at Cunneen’s and has also made many friends there. “I came here when I was single, met the love of my life here and it became a thing with us,” Lindahl said. “[I’ve] been coming here forever. [Leo] passed away a few years ago, and these are my friends, these are
my people, this is my place and it’s always going to be my place.” John Elkin, a bartender at Cunneen’s, said he started going there in the 1990s and began working there eight years ago. He said he likes the crowd and he has the freedom to confront any unruly customers. “I like that I’m the only person back here,” Elkin, 46, said. “I like the crowd we draw. I like my boss a lot. I like that it’s independent … if someone speaks to me improperly, I can respond properly.” The bar has a reputation for being a quiet bar with little trouble, according to Cunneen. He said he makes a point of kicking out anyone who becomes too loud, drunk or unruly. Cunneen’s has also attracted some local celebrities, including newspaper columnists, a coach from Northwestern University and singer Steve Goodman’s mother, according to Cunneen. Lindhal said there’s a rumor that Beat Generation writer Allen Ginsberg stopped in once, but Cunneen can’t confirm it. During the day, the bar is usually frequented by neighborhood residents, with students beginning to come in later in the evening. Cunneen said he could never figure out
why Loyola students like the bar, but he thinks the affordable drinks play a factor. Many customers at Cunneen’s said they value the bar, and Cunneen knows this. He said he doesn’t know what he plans to do with the bar in the future, but he knows he doesn’t want to sell it. Cunneen said he might pass it on to his fiance. Loyola senior Michael Needham, a physics major who lives above Cunneen’s, said he likes that the bar is still standing despite new developments emerging in Rogers Park. New businesses, such as a university building and a Target, are expected to open near campus in the near future. “It’s nice to have a place that even though all the different stuff is changing, there’s something constant in the area,” Needham, 22, said. “I think the people in the neighborhood really enjoy that.” Loyola junior Jana Richter, 21, said she prefers Cunneen’s for its quiet atmosphere. “I don’t need [Bar] 63 and the big bars,” the environmental science major said. “I just want to chill and be able to talk to people, and this is a nice place to go. This is the gem of Rogers Park.”
SISTER JEAN: Beloved Loyola icon triumphantly returns continued from page 1 Sister Jean also missed being around Loyola’s campus. “Of course I was thinking about all the students here, and how much I missed all of you and I was thinking of all the fans at the basketball game, and of course thinking of the team too,” Sister Jean said. Sister Jean began teaching at Mundelein College in 1961 and worked there for 30 years until Mundelein’s affiliation with Loyola in 1991. Since then, she’s had academic advising and campus ministry roles, in addition to most recently becoming a chaplain to Regis Hall residents and the men’s basketball team. Sister Jean was inducted into the athletics department’s Hall of Fame last year. She’s vital to every pregame ritual, where she says two separate prayers: one with the team, and one with fans to protect both teams. While she was absent during recovery, the athletics department recorded Sister Jean’s prayers and used an audio recording before each game. Steve Watson, the director of
athletics at Loyola, described the impact Sister Jean’s absence has on the department. “When she’s not around, there is definitely a void,” Watson said. “The past few months have been difficult for our coaches, and athletes and all of us.” In her time away from campus, Sister Jean watched the play-by-play of every men’s basketball game on her iPad while making sure to keep a close following on the team’s progress this season. “I’m so proud of our young men and what they are doing,” Sister Jean said. “I hope our fellas keep it up.” Clayton Custer, a redshirt junior guard, said Sister Jean is part of what gets the team fired up. The team was thrilled to see her back at Gentile Arena on Saturday. “She’s our rock,” Custer said. “To see her in the crowd [on Saturday], I think it gave us a little extra energy.” Although Sister Jean spends a lot of time supporting the basketball team, she’s a mentor for all 220 athletes, in addition to a friend many in the athletics department can confide in.
“It’s not just men’s basketball … [She’s] someone that our coaches and athletes and all of athletics can really count on and lean on. She’s great with advice for all of us,” Watson said. “She has her presence at our department meetings, she opens all of our meetings with a prayer.” While extremely passionate and knowledgeable about sports, Sister Jean’s involvement and love for the Loyola community extends beyond Norville Athletic Center. “She has developed relationships with people here on campus that you wouldn’t believe,” Watson said. Her office is centrally located in the Damen Student Center, which enables her to be fully immersed in student life. “Damen is such a hub of activity all the time. It’s a really nice place to be, to see students coming and going,” Sister Jean said. The students described how she makes a huge impact around campus. On Tuesday nights, Sister Jean hosts a prayer group in her residence for students. She also does things for students like passing out prayer
cards during finals week. Sister Jean can be spotted around campus wearing a red blazer and personalized running shoes that read “Sister Jean” on the back. “She brings life into the student center and the campus.” Nick Morales, a senior student employee at the Damen Desk said. Sister Jean said she hopes she can make it to the Damen Student Center to interact with students once again, if the weather permits her to use her walker or to be wheeled in her wheelchair. Marissa Morton, a junior student employee at the Damen Desk, said Sister Jean spends plenty time at the Damen Desk engaging with the student employees. “She always comes by the desk and is so excited to hear about our lives,” Morton said. “She really talks to us and gets a feel for what us students are going through.” Tom Hitcho, senior associate athletic director and personal friend of Sister Jean, has worked with Loyola Athletics for more than 40 years and described how Sister Jean’s positive attitude has been re-
flected in her recovery. “She’s always had a positive mental attitude to work hard and she never gave up,” Hitcho said. “She had a goal, and her goal was to get back to campus and be involved in campus life and support the students, staff and faculty.” Sister Jean said the immense support she’s received from the student body has helped motivate her to work hard in rehab. Many members of the Loyola community sent flowers and cards while she was in the hospital. “At Illinois Masonic I had so many plants and so many bouquets of flowers [the medical team] said they liked to come into my room because it smelled so good all the time,” Sister Jean said. “People gave me candy, students sent me cards.” She said she’s grateful for all the support she’s received from the community. “I appreciate people’s concern and their prayers and their good wishes all the time,” Sister Jean said. “It just made me so happy to be part of the Loyola community, in such a loving and caring community. I’m overwhelmed with all of it.”