by Richard Schaefer on 2015-02-11
Before its completion Dr. Ronald Drayson’s health had begun to fail. University administrators doubted that he could attend the open house, tentatively scheduled for January 1995. Don Prior, Loma Linda University Vice President for Development, arranged for the Draysons and their daughter, Darlene, to tour the unfinished building. While he was standing by one of the swimming pools, Drayson walked up and put his arm around Mr. Prior. “Don, I want to thank you for what you’ve done for us.”
“Ron,” Prior exclaimed, “it’s what you and Gracie have done for this institution…. You are the ones that made this all possible.”
“I know,” Dr. Drayson said. “But I had no idea it was going to be such a wonderful facility. I never envisioned that it would be like this.” No mistaking the Draysons’ pleasure in having their name attached to such a beautiful complex.
With the Draysons’ major contribution as seed money, Don’s team raised $17.1 million for the project—enough to build the complex and to start a maintenance endowment. By December 1994 asphalt was being laid in the parking lots of the Drayson Center, and its two pools had been filled with water. The project was on schedule.
The University encouraged Board members and University Councilors to attend tours and an open house for major donors at 4 p.m., Tuesday, Jan. 10, 1995. Dinner and a short program followed. The University videotaped the meeting for Dr. Drayson, who, by this time, was bedfast.
Including the Draysons, the University Councilors had donated $11 million dollars—approximately 70 percent of the project, including a $1 million gift from Dr. and Mrs. Clarence R. Lindgren to name the two swimming pools.
While the gymnasium was still under construction, Don Prior asked Dr. Lindgren (CME Class of 1940) to consider donating another $200,000 to construct an indoor running track. Dr. Lindgren went one better, adding another $20,000 for a scholarship endowment. It was to be named after his recently deceased wife, Ruby, and in honor of his sister-in-law, Mavis Minchen-Lindgren, a senior citizen who had run many marathons.
At the dedication on January 11, 1995, the gymnasium was packed with faculty, students-and Dr. Lindgren. When the door opened and Mavis started jogging the first lap on the second-floor track, the students started clapping, and soon every person in the huge room was on their feet. A memorable standing ovation for the Lindgrens.
A college acquaintance of the Draysons, Dr. Lindgren was so happy that he told Mr. Prior: “I watched the students come in, and I could tell that everyone was just loving the place. I am so pleased that we were able to make this gift to Loma Linda. How I love this place!”
Thus the Drayson Center became a reality. During a dedication ceremony for the 99,590-square-foot, state-of-the-art facility on Jan. 11, 1995, Board Chair Calvin B. Rock, Dmin, PhD, suggested to more than 1,500 attendees that the Drayson Center should not be an end in itself: “It is a means to an end. Its purpose is to facilitate the larger over-arching reason for your being here—the acquirement of academic knowledge. It is here to stimulate your minds, to energize your bodies, to relieve your tensions, and to boost your energies—all for the sake of increasing your capacity to learn; to absorb the wisdom that you will acquire, and then, to go forth from here prepared to do a greater good.”
The final cost of the Drayson Center was $16.7 million. Within months of its grand opening, the Drayson Center earned the 1995 “Facility of Merit” award by Athletic Business. Out of 57 facilities nominated, it was one of 10 selected for the award. Considerations included design, program and space requirements, cost and operations.
A Roster of the Drayson Center’s Amenities
1. A 21,000-square-foot, multipurpose gymnasium with a one-ninth mile elevated, three-lane, rubberized indoor running track.
2. A conference facility with a 210-seat auditorium, ideal for University classes and community programs (including the Proton Support Group), and a 40-seat conference room designed for smaller groups.
3. Five racquetball courts, with a large seating area for observers.
4. Fully equipped men’s and women’s locker rooms, both containing dry saunas and showers.
5. A 5,800-square-foot cardiovascular and fitness area with stationary cycles, treadmills, rowers, steppers, and free weights.
6. Two aerobic studios with a combined 5,500 square feet of suspended wood floor. Each room holds up to 100 people.
7. A 6,300-square-foot student life facility containing a student lounge and snack bar/restaurant, a game room, an arts and crafts area, a food preparation area, and a child play-care area.
8. Lifetime leisure classes, offered quarterly, include: sculpting, martial arts for children, karate, tai-chi, and calligraphy.
9. Water sports include a ten-lane lap pool with a diving board. It accommodates scuba diving classes. The three-lane recreation pool is wheelchair accessible. A 22-foot-high, 150-foot water slide ends in this shallow pool. An outdoor Jacuzzi accommodates 12 people.
10. An outdoor garden and picnic area, enclosed on four sides, features walkways, trees, benches, and low-voltage lighting for socializing.
11. The huge super field is a multi-use, lighted recreation area with four softball fields, surrounded by a half-mile jogging path, near six lighted tennis courts and two lighted volleyball courts.
12. Intramurals—the largest program in the Adventist higher education system. The Drayson Center offers basketball, baseball, softball, flag ball, soccer, Frisbee, indoor soccer, volleyball, table tennis, weight lifting, tennis, golf tournaments, and more.
13. In 2003 the University added two beach volleyball courts and horseshoe pits to the Drayson Center.
14. In 2010 the Drayson Center added a full-size soccer field, a synthetic-turf sports field that also can be used for flag ball.