Carole and Larry Krucoff were married in 1963, and have lived in Chicago ever since. Larry went to school at the University of Chicago. They moved to South Shore from Hyde Park, because the houses were larger and nicer and less expensive than the houses in Hyde Park. The area of the neighborhood where they live in is called Jackson Park Highlands. They have lived in their current home for 42 years.

The neighborhood, including the racial make up of it’s residents, has changed through the years. Originally the neighborhood housed very affluent Chicagoans. Gradually the residents changed from protestant to Catholic and then from white to predominantly African American. Larry said that in recent years the neighborhood has experienced an increased in nuisance crimes, but that has come with some unexpected advantages. It has brought neighbors together, they talk more, they formed watch groups, they got to know each other and now they socialize.

The house has a wonderful garden, backyard, and screened-in porch, where the Krucoffs dine and where their cats would enjoy the outdoors. When Carole is feeling blue she spends time on the porch swing on the back porch. Larry seeks solace in the kitchen. I made a painting of the porch swing in the screened-in porch where Carole goes when she if feeling blue. Though I visited the home of on a cold March day, I could imagine the delight of sitting on a porch swing in the summer months, drinking a glass of wine, looking out at the garden, and swinging gently. Carole says her home is just the place she wants to be, a place to feel sheltered.

Special thanks to Stefano Vita for use of his music in the audio recording.