Students miss old coffeehouse

WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE SETTING CHANGE? — Now is the time to speak up if you
miss the old coffee house. Should we move on and stay in the new Bultman Student Center or head back to the cozy Kletz?

The school year began in a familiar swing of busyness but the casual and cozy Thursday evenings of weekly SAC Coffeehouses have brought mixed emotions out of students. The new location, in the Program Area of the Jim and Martie Bultman Student Center, can hold a larger audience but the bright lights and audience – like seating cause many students to miss the dimly-lit, intimate space of the old Kletz.

As Sydney Sabbagha (’20), who performed last Thursday, Oct. 12 with friend Natalie Meyer (’20) noted, there is “a lot more pressure for the performers and it’s not the Coffeehouse vibes that it used to be.”

However, in true Hope College fashion, students spoke up to the unwanted change.

Sabbagha and Emily Damaska (’19) are the co-chairs for Coffeehouse as a whole and have already begun looking into ways that the event can uphold the comfy feeling it used to exude.

The pair is optimistic about the change. Damaska explained, “we are doing the best with the space that has been given to us.”

The two met with Dean Frost on Monday, Oct. 23, and are awaiting action on the administrative level. Although they both displayed enthusiasm for the new Bultman Student Center, they want to hear and act on comments in order to make the event as successful as possible.

Some may question the importance of the event; it is rather facile compared to the large scale events that the school plans on a given week.

Yet, many students who attend Coffeehouse see it as more than a small, weekly event but rather a consistent place that allows for calm in the midst of busy school weeks and a kind outlet for creative expression.

Sabbagha explained that the change is merely an opportunity to improve the past in a way that benefits future artists and students.