WINONA LAKE - Funding to establish a Billy Sunday Museum in Winona Lake passed the Indiana House Tuesday and now has only the Senate hurdle left to clear.

State representative Dave Wolkins (R-Winona Lake) said today the total state budget included $500,000 as a one-time grant to turn Sunday's Winona Lake home into a state museum.

"The budget will change drastically in the Senate," he said, but the Sunday museum funding "has a real good chance of passing."

Wolkins said if the funding is approved, Grace College, which owns the Sunday home, will donate the home to the state and the Indiana Department of Natural Resources will oversee the museum.

Brent Wilcoxson, president of Winona Lake's town council, said this morning, "Obviously we're very pleased. ... I think people in the House were very impressed with what the Billy Sunday Museum can do, not only for our area but for the state."

He said the DNR usually requires some local help when a state museum is established. "I'm sure that the (Winona Lake) historical society will be involved."

Members of the Winona Lake Town Council said Tuesday that the town also has raised $15,000 toward the museum, and that additional traffic in town to visit the Sunday home would not be a problem.

Wilcoxson said the initial state grant should fund the museum for approximately six years, since the state estimates annual operating costs at between $15,000 and $100,000 per year. The grant also would pay for start-up costs.

The proposed grant would come from the Build Indiana Fund, which is generated from Indiana's lottery. The town council members did not view using gambling profits to fund a museum honoring an evangelist as ironic, even though there are no businesses in Winona Lake where lottery tickets can be purchased.

"We've also used cigarette and alcohol taxes for years," said councilman Dick Taylor. [[In-content Ad]]