Chicago's Former First Lady Maggie Daley Leaves Her Legacy with NEIU's Best and Brightest

Chicagoans mourn the death of former first lady Maggie Daley who lost her 9-year battle against breast cancer on Wednesday, Nov. 23. She was 68. The outspoken urban arts advocate was the champion of the Gallery 37 initiative, which birthed many renowned afterschool programs for young Chicago teens. The most notable of those is After School Matters.

The Independent was able to catch up with Northeastern Illinois University students who participated in a few of the programs for their take on the experiences they had. Yasmine Acosta-Aguayo, a junior Spanish major and graduate of Kelvyn Park High School, worked with the After School Matters (ASM) program.

She said the program provided her with opportunities to participate in mural painting, physical fitness and quilting. Daley's favorite portion of the program was the quilting. Acosta-Aguayo's group completed a quilt that was gifted to Daley. "Working with ASM gave me the opportunity to not only have a job after school but also to give back to my community," said Acosta-Aguayo.  She was fortunate enough to hear Daley give a speech to her and her classmates. Acosta-Aguayo said, "She told us how things worked and she gave us a brief history of the program. She just came to see how everything was going. "

Currently, over 75,000 Chicago Public School students have participated in Daley's programs. Many of whom go on to do great things. NEIU student Patricia Perez is nearly done pursuing a degree in art, as well as a Latino and Latin American Studies minor, a job and independent art career. She did her tour of the Gallery 37 program near the beginning in 1995. Perez said, "I signed up for a job at Gallery 37 and we worked underneath these white, huge, tents on Block 37…it was my first time really learning a skill and getting paid to do it – which is unheard of, especially in the arts!"

The programs that have long been offered through the Gallery 37 project include visual, performing and liberal arts. Perez said she learned many skills but laughed when considering she learned how to make frames from scratch. Perez said, "I learned how to make frames when I was 15. Of course, I can't remember anything I learned about measurements but I still remember the experience – being able to make something and knowing that someone was going to purchase it." These are the skills many students have taken away from their experience with the programs.

Students in these programs didn't only hone their skills in the arts but they also gained experience in working alongside diverse communities. "You met different kids from all over Chicago. Some kids came from as far as 100 and something, to kids from far north, like almost near Evanston. I remember there was one boy who was a special needs kid…being exposed to people living with different disabilities is a part of life," said Perez.

Currently, Perez is deciding what's next after obtaining her undergraduate degree. She occasionally sells her art but works mainly in teaching. She concentrates on social justice and spreading her work to a larger audience. In summer 2011, Perez received a sponsorship to teach in Tanzania, Africa. Perez said, "Until you just immerse yourself in the culture and become one of the people, you don't really understand what that experience is like. " Taking a leaf from the book of her unofficial mentor, Maggie Daley, Perez conducted a two week art course with seven Tanzanian men, teaching them color theory. "In two weeks they accomplished what I usually take 10 to 12 weeks to teach," said Perez. She will run an exhibit of the students' work at the El Centro campus on Feb. 3.

"[Maggie Daley] was a woman figure in this city that actually did something for youth", Perez said. "This is the one thing that I can say really made a difference for Chicago's communities. " There are many programs in the city offered for youth. Not many have made the strides Daley's programs have, nor have many lasted as long. It is the hope of many that the legacy Maggie Daley left behind will endure the test of time. Acosta-Aguayo said there was one thing she took away from her brief meeting with Maggie Daley – "Always give back to the community".