By Lea Kahn, Staff Writer
Dominic Macharia lives around the corner from the Lawrence Community Center, so when he learned there was an open house at the center at 295 Eggerts Crossing Road, he decided to stop and spend a few minutes.
”I came to find out about the programs that I could take part in,” said Mr. Macharia, who lives on Johnson Avenue. He added that he had visited the community center before HomeFront assumed control of it two years ago.
”It looks different. It looks good especially the computer room,” remarked Mr. Macharia, who was one of a handful of visitors who toured the Lawrence Community Center at its open house Thursday afternoon.
Visitors to the Lawrence Community Center, which is open to all township residents, were impressed by the colorful lobby. Artwork was hung on the walls, and part of one wall was set aside to highlight Popsicle stick art American flags made of Popsicle sticks that were painted with the Stars and Stripes.
But it’s not only fresh paint. Several rooms have been renovated, including two rooms in the basement that have been transformed into computer rooms and that are open to Lawrence residents thanks to a $100,000 donation from the Educational Testing Service and its employees.
There are two additional classrooms on the second floor and an alcove with two blue wicker chairs that are ideal for reading or relaxing, set in front of a large window that overlooks Eggerts Crossing Road.
Connie Mercer, the executive director of HomeFront, welcomed the guests during a short ceremony. She said she was pleased to celebrate the open house, and that the nonprofit group is grateful to “everyone in the community who made something important happen.”
Fred Vereen Jr., who was the first executive director of the Lawrence Neighborhood Service Center the predecessor to the Lawrence Community Center briefly outlined the center’s history. He told the audience that the LNSC grew out of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s “Great Society” initiative in the 1960s.
The goal of the Lawrence Neighborhood Service Center, which was located in a small, white house opposite the center’s present building, was to help residents of the Eggerts Crossing neighborhood, Mr. Vereen said. There was a credit union and a day-care center in the building at 295 Eggerts Crossing Road, which opened in 1971.
”That little, white house was the acorn for this building. Children need to know the history of where they are what you see today and what it took to get here,” said Mr. Vereen, who later managed the Eggerts Crossing Village affordable housing development at 175 Johnson Avenue.
The Lawrence Community Center, which is open weekdays from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., offers many activities. They range from jazzercise and Zumba workout classes to meditation classes and TaeBo, which is a program that combines different exercise disciplines to provide an overall workout.
Nicotine Anonymous and Alcoholics Anonymous also meet at the Lawrence Community Center on a weekly basis. An “English as a Second Language” course is offered, as well as instruction in Bollywood dancing.
And if there is enough interest, a ping pong or volleyball league may be formed.
The computer room, which is open to all residents weekdays from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., offers classes in Word, Excel, Access and PowerPoint. Using the Rosetta Stone program, it is possible to learn English, Spanish, Polish and French.
All of the computers may be used for general use. They are equipped with Internet access and the latest software.
Pepper Evans, who is the president of the Lawrence Community Center’s board of directors, said the center wants to encourage all Lawrence Township residents to take part in activities that are offered at the facility.
”There is a new infusion of energy. The lights are on, the doors are open and the welcome mat is out. This is your community center and it will be what you make of it,” Ms. Evans said.
For more information, contact the Lawrence Community Center at www.lawrencecomctr.com, or 609-883-3379.
