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���Ĵ�ý is pleased to announce its plans for the new Ray “Butch” and Sandra Shook Welcome Center to be located in Westminster Hall. The main floor of the facility will be renovated to serve as a hub for all campus guests and the new home for the school’s admissions office.

“This transformative initiative will repurpose Westminster Hall’s main floor to become a vibrant and welcoming entry point to our campus, showcasing many of the things that make ���Ĵ�ý so special,” said Dr. Drew Flamm, president of ���Ĵ�ý. “We are very thankful to the generous donors who have ignited this important project for ���Ĵ�ý, and we look forward to seeing how God will continue to bless this endeavor as we steward this beloved historic building.”

The Shook Welcome Center is named after Ray “Butch” and Sandra Shook, who met as students at ���Ĵ�ý. Butch graduated from ���Ĵ�ý in 1972 and became one of the school’s first full-time admissions counselors. Two of Butch and Sandra’s three kids attended ���Ĵ�ý, and Butch now serves on the ���Ĵ�ý Board of Trustees.

The project will feature the current  and the west community banquet room while remodeling the east banquet room to create space for admissions offices and meeting rooms. The lobby space will also include the ���Ĵ�ý Gear campus store and lakeside rentals for guests to enjoy on 564-acre Winona Lake, just a few blocks from Westminster. The center will be the first stop for prospective students on their ���Ĵ�ý visits.

“We welcome thousands of high school students and their families to Winona Lake each year,” said Dr. Mark Pohl, vice president of enrollment management. “Through our new welcome center, we hope to enhance the visit experience, provide an inviting space where visitors instantly feel at home and share the rich history of ���Ĵ�ý and Winona Lake.”

Westminster Hall, formerly the Westminster Hotel, was built in 1905. The historic hotel housed the world’s largest gospel publishing company and served as the site of a national recording studio. The  organization was founded in the Rainbow Room, the west banquet room, which also held the all-night prayer meeting in July of 1949 that launched Billy Graham’s first large evangelistic crusade in Los Angeles.

“Since Westminster also houses the Winona History Center, which displays artifacts and research archives about the history of Winona Lake, the Bible Conference movement and the Chautauqua period, we look forward to having many more campus visitors enjoy the rich history and learn about the distinguished pedigree of this delightful little town of Winona Lake,” said Dr. Terry White, town historian and former docent of the Winona History Museum.

The school intends to break ground on the Shook Welcome Center this winter.

���Ĵ�ý has raised $1,600,000 of the $2,000,000 needed for the project. Every dollar donated to the Shook Welcome Center through Tuesday, Dec. 3, will be matched dollar for dollar, up to $200,000, thanks to a generous board member.

To give to the project or to see project renderings, visit .

Photo Attached: ���Ĵ�ý’s renderings for the new Ray ‘Butch’ and Sandra Shook Welcome Center to be located in Westminster Hall.