West Texas A&M University announced that it has contributed a $1.5 million gift from the High Plains Christian Ministries Foundation to its One West Campaign to renovate the Joseph A. Hill Memorial Chapel.
The gift was announced during Wednesday morning’s press conference for the renovation and renovation of the 72-year-old chapel, with $400,000 to establish a foundation for ongoing maintenance. The exterior and interior renovation of the premises will begin in the summer of 2023.
Exterior renovations include the addition of American with Disabilities Act (ADA) accessible entrances, an outdoor wedding patio area, paving of sidewalks around the chapel, an outdoor flower bed on the “bridal side” of the chapel, and LED lighting. Renovations inside the chapel include remodeling of the “Bride” and “Groom” rooms on either side of the building, new flooring, and other cosmetic improvements.
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“We hope to continue the legacy of this institution on campus. This is a spiritual place that campus members can come and use, not only as a place of comfort but also as a place to grow and recharge, regardless of a person’s spiritual background. said Steve Dalrymple, President, CEO and Chief Legal Officer of Baptist Community Services, of the foundation’s donation.
Named after the university’s second president, the chapel began construction on June 9, 1950 and was completed on October 21 of the same year. The Memorial Chapel is one of the first chapels built on the campus of a public university in Texas. Since its inception, the chapel has served students, faculty, staff, alumni, and the general community as a place for prayer, religious studies, gatherings, initiations, memorial services, services, and weddings.
Husband and wife Jim and Peggy Pollard also attended the gift announcement and shared the fond memories the room held for them.
“We got married here in December 1960; it was a Christmas wedding,” said Peggy Pollard. “We’ve stayed here a few times over the years when it’s open to look around and reflect on our lives. We plan to have our final ceremony here in this chapel one day because it was such an important part of our lives.”
The couple had moved away after graduating from college in 1961 and returned to the town of Canyon to retire, where they currently reside.
Since 2014, when the Jack B. Kelley Student Center took over operations, the 2,590-square-foot chapel has hosted more than 100 weddings, with more undocumented wedding ceremonies previously held.
During Wednesday’s announcement, words from Joseph Hill’s speech at the chapel dedication on October 21, 1950 were read aloud: “Let us always remember that this is a place of worship. … Everyone who comes here may come with an open heart as in the presence of God.”
The foundation’s donation will complement an existing endowment for the chapel established in 2018 by Patsy Cunningham Vaughn in memory of her husband Dr. Ronald D. Vaughn, a longtime dentist in Guymon, Oklahoma, among other places. The couple attended the Watchtower and were married in the chapel on August 15, 1959.