An 82-year-old man, whose ice cream truck has been a staple of a wealthy Chicago neighborhood since 1974, was robbed at gunpoint Tuesday.
For the past 49 years, Wilfredo Cintron has been selling ice cream out of his truck.
This is the first time someone has threatened to hurt him.
“Thank God we are alive,” Cintron said.
“I always tell my son, material things are not valuable but our lives are.
“It was just money. We will keep working.
“People know me here, it’s why I stayed,” Cintron said.
“The majority of people treat me very well.”
“No plans to stop,” his son Jay Cintron said.
“He said he doesn’t want to be at home sitting around.
“It’s ridiculous what’s going on with all these robberies,” he added.
“I honestly think something needs to be done about it.
“I felt hopeless because I seen that they had a gun to his head – and I was scared for his life,” he said.
“My father’s been driving this truck for 49 years with these doors open, and today, he has to have his doors closed,”
The community came together to support Cintron.
Robert Magiet, co-owner of a nearby restaurant, helped raise $2,400 for Cintron.
“I was in disbelief, you know, so, right away the first thing I thought, I was looking at how we can help this guy,” Magiet said.
After an 82-year-old ice cream man was robbed at gunpoint, a Wicker Park restaurant spent thousands on free treats for neighbors as a show of support. https://t.co/VycC6f8fIn pic.twitter.com/ButKfdvmS0
— Block Club Chicago (@BlockClubCHI) July 21, 2023
Local resident Anays Antongiorgi said:
“It’s great to see that he’s still committed.
“He was always so sweet and so warm and welcoming.”
“Unfortunately, with life these days, you have to be a little more apprehensive to strangers who approach you, but he was sweet.
“He wants to see the smiles on customers’ faces.”
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