Sufficient Grounds/Bookstore Changes

The new Sufficient Grounds/Bookstore building will be open to all after Thanksgiving break. "Whether we do a full-blown grand opening then, or in January, I think we're still talking about that, but being as everyone will be here then, that's the opening," said Ed Bernhard,  director of auxiliary services here at Bethel. Sufficient Grounds is in the process of vacating its current location adjacent to campus and moving directly onto campus, in the same building as the Bethel Bookstore. "We've been thinking about, for years, about pulling (the coffee house and the book store) into the same location," said Bernard. "There was an anonymous donor that stepped forward and made this possible". Bernhard has been deeply involved in this project since the beginning. "It's been a  couple year conversation that's finally a reality." said Bernhard, who really wants this building to be about the students.  "(We want it to be) a place to meet with faculty, hang out, and just be a center of activity for the campus. The new building will be open to people off-campus, but being on campus, it'll be more convenient for students. Folks that come over after maybe a play or a basketball game, I think it's just natural for them to spill over to (the new building)." Student involvement and entertainment are also key factors in the new building. "We want this to be really a fun place," said Berhhard. "We've had someone suggest something like an old movie night, and we're going to put a screen in the Bookstore so they can do that. There will be a small stage area, and we'll have students involved in maybe bringing in some small acoustic events, speakers, and things like that. We want the students to feel like it's really theirs." One change that should be welcome by students is that the new Sufficient will actually be open on Sunday evenings. "We're going to have Sunday hours. We'll open probably later in the afternoon and go into the evening. Sometimes students come back to campus on Sunday afternoon and there's not a lot to do. So it might give them some place to hang out, talk about what they did over the weekend, do homework, who knows." In regards to the current Sufficient Grounds location, it's future is still up in the air. "The college is still discussing what to do (with the current location) ... the college has looked at doing other things over here that I can't speak to." This could mean something new and exciting for the building, or the lease could simply be vacated.