By ROBERT LINNEHAN
The Spot will open its doors for artistic minded teenagers in early October when it hosts its first Open Mic event of the new school year. The teenager hangout spot has eight musically inclined groups already scheduled for the event, which will also raise funding for a charity that supports educational efforts in Africa.
Jacqueline Gottlob, a 16-year-old member of the Spot’s Teen Advisory Board, said eight groups have been confirmed for the open mic event. The show is scheduled for Friday, Oct. 8, at 6:30 p.m. It will likely last about three hours, Gottlob said.
The event is free for teenagers, she said, but will charge for refreshments. Money from refreshment sales will go toward supporting more Spot programs and outreaches in the future, she said.
T-shirts will also be sold to help benefit the Unified for Unifat foundation, a charitable organization that raises money for the education of children in Uganda.
The Spot is located on the second floor of the Town Center and is directly outside of Boscov’s department store.
The Spot — the official name of the Teen Center — opened in January 2009 after the Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust donated 2,200 square feet of space and worked with many of its contractors to make the project possible. The center serves students from Eastern Regional High School and Voorhees Middle School and allows them come together to study, socialize and attend special functions. The Spot features wellness workshops, free tutoring, college seminars and community service events.
In the future, The Spot will also be hosting a pre SAT test for high school students on Saturday, Oct. 2 from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. The educational event is sponsored by the Tutoring Club of Cherry Hill. Pre registration is required and interested students can call 616–8808 or can email Alan Coen at Alan@thetutoringclubch.com.
The test costs $35 and all proceeds will benefit The Spot, said Toni Gottlob, coordinator for The Spot.
Interested teens can visit The Spot Web site at Thespotteencenter.org to see what events the organization will host in the future.
