As I sat talking with Katie Hogan, long-time resident of Rogers Park, community leader, peace activist, teacher and co-owner of the Heartland Café, I realized I wanted to be her when I grow up. Katie is a local hero in my book. She has worked for over thirty years striving to make her and others in Rogers Park more aware and more compassionate toward other people, whatever color or belief.

What inspires you?
Everything inspires me. I was raised to be appreciative of everything, health, life itself and other gifts of our lives. Some of my gifts were great parents, good family life and a rootedness in faith. When I grew up it was called Catholic Church faith.  Later faith came to include Native American beliefs & practices as well as Buddhism, yoga and more disciplines. Jesus was a hero of mine growing up as was Martin Luther King Jr. Growing up heroes include the many others who have worked for peace, justice and civil rights. I was fifteen in 1965. I latched on the Civil Rights Movement as a way to act as a Christian. I worked against segregation and ignorance, i.e., ignorance of other people which allows for discrimination.

Where were you born and raised?
Southwest side of Chicago. 30 miles as the crow flies southwest. Here I am on the Northwest corner. I come from a family of eight kids. I had to leave the southwest side because it was sufficatingly racist. My mother had received a Chemistry degree from Mundelein College back in the 30s by the time she was twenty years old which was unique. I also went to Mundelein College - only in the late sixties. I was sold on all-women education having been raised in all girl Catholic schools. I found it to be a freeing way to be educated. Up until eighteen, I was considering the nunnery. At eighteen I got involved in the Feminist Movement and saw that I had more options than becoming a nun or getting married. I was glad that I was born when I was. In my mother's generation no matter how smart a woman was she was raised to believe that she had to be a housewife. I didn't want that for myself.

When I started high school I followed the line on foreign affairs. I thought those people in Vietnam must need our help. I believed the US was not about being a bully. Clearly the US was about helping people escape tyranny. Within twelve months, with many body bags coming back and many more young men coming back alive saying this is screwed up, I had reversed my position. This war is not what it pretended to be. The Vietnamese people didn't want us there. During all this time, I saw people raised to the heights of our government that were - in practice -strong opponents of democracy. And the people who fought for democracy and hope and justice were killed off. At a tender age I began to do battle between faith and despair. Faith has always won out. I have to use my gifts to continue to inspire people today to have hope and faith that good will prevail.

What words of wisdom do you share with them young people today?
I don't have children of my own but I have a lot of former students, god-children and all these employees over the years who I feel I have mothered to a degree. I tell them they can do anything they imagine. They are privileged because they were born in the US. The serious news is that they have a great responsibility. The only thing that is important is that they give or serve. I tell them that they are unique and that nobody can do what they can do. Everybody has a role, something to give. I also tell them to get out of the country. By that I don't mean Cancun or Europe. I mean further away places in South America, Latin America, Africa and Asia. An American (U.S.) isn't fully educated without the experience of being outside the U.S. looking in, specifically from a "3rd World" country We try to run the Heartland Café with a bi-cultural perspective, with the latinos ad gringos working together without barriers.

How did the Heartland Café open?
We opened in 1976. Michael James had the idea. At age twenty-five I had to get healthy and wanted to limit my foods to whole grains and whole vegetables, natural foods. There weren't any restaurants in Chicago that served that kind of food. There was macrobiotic place but the ambiance was lacking. Michael and I wanted to open a fun place, a healthy greasy spoon. We want people to feel at home here. The other goals were to create a positive work experience for the employees and to create a center for the community to come to discuss important issues of the day. These goals were actually realized within just a few years of opening. Without knowing it, we had started building an institution. About business and running a restaurant, we knew diddley squat. We always met wonderful people who helped us over the years. The neighborhood was ready. We were all young and we gave and gave. We are appreciative to all those start up energy folks. We've employed an average of 40 - 50 poeple all year long for more than 20 of our 27 years.  We have a lot of fun.

Any plans for the Heartland?
We hope to rebuild the bar and the server galley in the spring. Physical plant-wise, there are always needs - plumbing improvements - flooring, painting everything and roof repair. I hope we can accomplish these goals in the next couple years, since Michael & I are getting older and might want to get some young bloods in this project, allowing ourselves to write the books, make the movies and bring on the revolution here at home. The Heartland Journal is on the right track, thanks to Paige James, the editor.  The free quarterly is getting great reviews, (just got mentioned in the most recent Utne Reader.) We've finally established a 501c3 (not for profit) through the Journal and that will aid us greatly in providing additional information and service to the community. We also get quite a bit of info and inspiration to the troops out over the airwaves on our weekly radio show called "Live From the Heartland" on 88.7 Fm WLUW. And finally, the Chautauqua, a wonderful series of live forums we've put together over the last year, in response to the threats against our freedoms and rights by the current administration in Washington. Any hopes for the community? This year I hope that everyone in the community votes. Voting had gone out of fashion because people don't trust who gets elected. I am saying hold your nose and vote. The more people vote we get better results. I am happy to work full-time on regime change this year. I have lived in Rogers Park for over thirty years, we aren't afraid to speak out up here. I am proud of that. We all have personal power and the ability to create inside of us. Let us all create a better community and world together.

Where can people find you?
Most times, I can be found at the Heartland Café at 7000 N Glenwood at Lunt enjoying tasty food, fun music, and good conversation.