Upgrades coming soon to Brother Willie’s

On April 8, the SJU Student Senate approved a $15,000 request for technological upgrades in Brother Willie’s Pub at SJU. This is just one step in a larger plan to revamp Brother Willie’s with both physical upgrades and greater encouraged use for students.

“I just want to see a place where people are comfortable and can hang out,” 2023-24 SJU Senate President Wes Kirchner said. “I want to give people a reason to leave their dorms.”

According to Kirchner, the Senate’s contribution will likely go toward an updated sound system, new microphones, a new soundboard and a large projector. He said any leftover money will be used for other pub improvements.

Several physical upgrades took place over the summer, including a new paint job, new carpet on the pub’s upper level, re-felted pool tables and a new bar top from the Abbey woodshop. Brother Willie’s also has consistent hours this year: 5 to 9 p.m., Thursday through Saturday most weeks. Multiple new events like Sunday brunches have been hosted in the pub on top of traditional occasions like Theology on Tap and Praise in the Pub.

In the future, Director of Student Activities Aaron Voth said another goal is to add high-top tables and more mobile furniture. He also said that he hopes more consistent programming will take place.

“It is something that we have been working on and will continue to work on, because it shouldn’t be difficult for students to have fun,” Voth said.

The process of reevaluating and revamping Brother Willie’s began last summer when Associate Provost for Student Success Mary Geller assumed her new role, according to Voth. The pub came up as a location of particular interest because of its central location on upper campus and its designation as the only place on campus where students of legal drinking age can purchase alcoholic beverages.

“The desire is to create a more vibrant campus life at St. John’s,” Geller said. “I just saw Brother Willie’s Pub sitting there empty, and it seems like such a good resource. I didn’t understand why we weren’t utilizing it more.”

Current students played a role in the revamp, too. SJU sophomore Kobe Forbes, who served as the student activities representative on the Senate this year and works for the Center for Student Leadership and Engagement (CSLE), wanted Brother Willie’s to be an alternative to the bars in St. Joseph for students to enjoy alcoholic drinks.

“It’s a better way to keep students on campus,” Forbes said. “It’s a safer means of providing students a place to drink and to still have engagement on campus.”

Despite the upgrades, the pub hasn’t seen as much traffic as those involved with the revamp had hoped. Pub events have been well-attended, but its standard Thursday-Sunday open hours have drawn sparse crowds.

Voth attributed this phenomenon to four factors: CSLE’s lack of free time to devote to the pub, funding for upgrades running out, culinary staff changes and shortages and a lack of institutional awareness about the pub’s purpose and existence.

“There isn’t a culture of using the pub,” Kirchner said. “For us seniors, the pub has not been open and has not been a space you use unless you’re going to a Theology on Tap or some kind of speaking event.”

For those who pushed for changes from the beginning, they hope that progress continues.

“We are trying to create a place where this is your home for the four years that you’re here,” Voth said. “The pub is just an awesome place to come together in community, whether you drink or don’t.”