GARDNER-WEBB COLLEGE
SewOt^ tAc CHtvzc
e^Ucfc ax*H^u^ Springs, North Carolina
to Improve Campus
Thursday, November 21, 1991 No. 5
A Million
By Dawn E. Camp
Editor
One Gardner-Webb alumnus has returned
to make a million dollar splash on campus.
The gift has been made by a couple who
have asked not to be identified at this time.
The gift, made in the form of a pledge over
a period of several years, begins with a
$200,000 initial grant. According to GWC
President Chris White, it is the wish of the
donors that the money be used to build a
lake and a bell tower.
White said that this pledge is the first gift
the couple has ever made to the college. It
is also only the second million dollar gift that
GWC has received during its history. (The
other was the Dover Foundation’s contribu
tion to the renovation of the campus center
last year.)
He added that the couple "wanted to do
something that would be of lasting in
fluence, that would not be done otherwise
and something that will draw attention to the
college.
"I am pleased with the gift. I am some
what surprised that we were able to get such
a significant amount as the first gift."
A lake and a bell tower. White said, have
been in the college’s long-range plan for
over 4 years. This master plan, commis
sioned by the Board of Trustees, is a work
ing, comprehensive campus design that al
lows for systematic growth and develop
ment.
Several areas on campus were identified
in this plan as good places for the addition
of "water features," White said. He added
that these features are attractive elements
on many college campuses.
"... Donors have in mind
an idyllic setting."
-President Chris White
The proposed five acre lake will cover an
area about the size of 6 football fields,
stretching from the Boiling Spring garden
area to the north side of Spangler Stadium.
'The donors have in mind an idyllic set
ting," White said. The total project, he said,
would include building the lake, bell tower,
walking trails, picnic shelter, and, eventual
ly, a perimeter road on the far side of the
lake.
Even now that the pledge has been made,
there are some obstacles which may stand in
the way of the lake. The Boiling Springs
town sewer line, which runs beside the creek
bed, must be rerouted, White said. He
added that, at this point, the cost of moving
the line is unknown.
Another potential problem is getting
governmental permission to build the lake.
"It will take some time to get all of the per
mits," White said.
It may be a long time before this lake be
comes reality. "We are not in the business
of borrowing money for this project," said
White. "We will build as much as money al
lows and then wait until more comes."
When asked about the importance of a
lake in relation to other needs on campus.
White pointed out that gifts of this size often
lead to other contributions.
"I fully expect the next major gifts to be
in the area of scholarshps," he added. He
also indicated his optimism about the efforts
of the development staff to increase en
dowed scholarships and other programatic
funds.
Noel Hall to be Constructed
W(7EL RALL
Special to The Pilot
A donation given to the college recently
will enable GWC to begin construction of an
additional academic building.
Noel Hall, named in memory of the late
Dr. George T, Noel and in honor of Mrs.
Marguerite Warren Noel, who made the
$300,000 pledge, will be adjacent to the
Lindsay Building.
The wing will be designed to contain both
classrooms and faculty offices.
Dr. Gil Blackburn, dean of academic af
fairs, is currently reviewing proposals to
decide which department(s) will be housed
in the building, which will replace the blank
wall on the east-side of Lindsay.
Lindsay was acquired from the Boiling
Springs Baptist Church, which used the
building as a Sunday School annex. A blank
wall was left where the church hoped to con
struct a new sanctuary. After GWC bought
the property and the church moved, the wall
was left.
According to Gardner-Webb President
Chris White, the addition of this building
will make the area one of the most
prominent areas of the campus.
"It is with much gratitude that we acknow
ledge this gift to Gardner-Webb," said Presi
dent Chris White. "Noel Hall will forever
represent the love and dedication of this
family for Gardner-Webb and will serve as
a reminder of the dedication to Christian
education that Marguerite Noel has ex
hibited in many ways."
Noel Hall is one of many donations made
to the college by the Noel family.
In 1983, Mrs. Noel established the Dr.
George T. Noel Memorial Fund for Visual
ly Impaired Students. She named the
scholarship in honor of her late husband,
who was an ophthalmologist in Karmapolis
for nearly 30 years.
Mrs. Noel also provided a permanent
home, the Noel House, for the college’s
programs for handicapped students.
The Noels’ daughter, Marylene, estab
lished the Marylene Noel Scholarship for
Handicapped Students.