Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
WINONA LAKE - As student body president Ryan Egli heaved a sledge hammer into a sheet of dry wall, the dedication of the Robert and Frances Gordon Student Recreation Center was complete.
Located on King's Highway between the fire station and the Herald Bookstore in Winona Lake, the former Medtronic Sofamor Danek Inc. building will be available for activities at the beginning of the fall term, according to Grace College and Seminary President Ron Manahan.
Manahan addressed the student body during the 10 a.m. chapel hour held in the building Thursday, introducing Robert Gordon, a local resident, who, along with his wife, Frances, provided funds to purchase the building in 1999.
Long-time supporters of the campus, the Gordons also gave a $1.5 million donation toward the restoration of Westminster Hall.
During the last three years, $3 million has been raised to renovate and equip the 81,000-square-foot facility.
The building will house one collegiate basketball-volleyball court; two practice basketball-volleyball courts; a 160-meter jogging track with a separate 50-meter straightway and have the capabilities for indoor tennis, badminton and other sports.
The 22,500-square-foot fitness area will have a weight training area with $130,000 worth of new Cybex exercise equipment, an aerobics room, locker room facilities as well as physical education department offices and a classroom.
Uses for the additional 25,000-square-foot former office area has yet to be determined.
Grace's current indoor athletic facility is the 17,000-square-foot Lancer Gym, built in 1958.
Students use the Kosciusko County YMCA during specific hours, located 1.3 miles from the campus.
An on-campus recreation center has been been a college goal since 1978. In the last eight years, the student body population has doubled to 1,100.
