Summer cleanup

A room in Patterson getting cleaned up and a fresh coat of paint

I was on campus the other day and saw the campus getting ready for the new semester in August. The above picture is from Patterson Hall where many rooms are getting a fresh coat of paint. This year not only marks 110 years since the college began, but Patterson Hall's 50th Anniversary. It was built in 1960 and the first classes moved into the rooms for the 1961-1962 school year.

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Thank you Joanie for 42 wonderful years of service!

Today the college honored Joan (Joanie) Oakley for 42 years of services at Practical Bible Training School, Practical Bible College, and Davis College. She came as a student in the Fall of 1961 and graduated in the Spring of 1964. In the Fall of 1965 she returned to PBTS to work in the kitchen and she has been working preparing meals for 42 years for the students, faculty, and staff that have walked through the doors. Thank you Joanie for your service to this school, but more importantly to God.

December 7 marks 46 years since Dr. Gordon Davis passed away

December 7th not only marks Pearl Harbor's 66 anniversary, but also 46 years since Dr. Gordon Davis passed away. He passed away soon after the students went on the long break (Thanksgiving through New Years). He passed away on December 7, 1961 to the shock of the students when they returned from break to find that their president and professor had gone home to glory. He been ill for several months from a lung tumor before the Lord took him home to rejoin his father and brother in Heaven. What happened to his Bible still remains a mystery.

What memories do Alumni have of Dr. Gordon Davis?

Coming up: The interview with Dr. Woodrow Kroll (1965)

The making of Patterson Dorm

A few weeks ago I did a post about the first plan of what would become Patterson Dorm. To view that article click here. This is in a sense a sequel to that post. I was going through the 1960 and 1961 Theologues and I was looking at the pictures taken around the time of the construction of Patterson.

This is a drawing of what they thought Patterson would look like when
complete from the 1960 Theologue

The 1960 Theologue also showed the ground breaking with Dr. Gordon Davis and Hazel as shown below.
Also the building of the structure for Patterson Hall.

The photo above shows the side of Patterson. The main entrance near the RD apartment

is on the farther left of the image.

The 1961 Theologue showed the completed dorm and dedication. The photo below show Dr. Gordon Davis, Dr. Patterson, Dr. Lowe, and who appears to be Dr. Benson.
The pictures below show Dr. Patterson in a completed dorm room and the finished building from the driveway.
Patterson Hall is nearly 40 years old. It will turn 40 in 2010. It is still being used for the glory of God as a dormitory and classrooms in the basement.

The President's Lost Bible: A Davis College Mystery

It was a dark and stormy night...as most mysteries begin. I walked up the main stairs of Chatlos-Davis turning left at the top. I entered the gloomy Alumni Lounge with only the light from the streaks of lightning that reflected off the window planes dotted with rain. I journey over to the display case where the Bibles of former presidents reside. I starred into the glass in disbelief...Gordon Davis’ Bible was missing. Who could have stolen the Bible of the third President of PBTS (now Davis College); the son of the founder Dr. John A. Davis? Where would the evidence lead me...who could have the Bible...(cut to black).

Now in reality we really do not know where Gordon Davis’ Bible is and we have not known for some time. The display is set up with a picture of Gordon and a note where a Bible would be reading: CAN YOU FILL THIS SPACE? DO YOU KNOW WHERE DR. GORDON DAVIS’ BIBLE IS?

I have not been able to figure out where it might be. I have found another Bible of John A. Davis that is not in the display case, but not one that has Gordon’s name in it. Some believe that it was buried with him in 1961 when he passed away. Others think that Hazel (his wife) hung onto it until her death in 1982 and that Hazel’s step-son Steven Custard has it. So far the mystery is still out there and I do not know where to turn. Are there any clues out there in Cyberspace?