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Caraway dedicates new auditorium
Chad Austin, BSC Communications and K. Allan Blume, BR Editor
May 19, 2015
4 MIN READ TIME

Caraway dedicates new auditorium

Caraway dedicates new auditorium
Chad Austin, BSC Communications and K. Allan Blume, BR Editor
May 19, 2015

Caraway Conference Center has opened the doors of a new auditorium and meeting space that allows an enhanced experience by guests who use the facility each year.

Hollifield Hall, named in honor of Wyndolyn Royster Hollifield, was officially dedicated on Tuesday, May 19 during the regular meeting of the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina’s (BSC) Board of Directors. More than 100 people attended the dedication, which included BSC leaders, board members, donors and Caraway staff.

Milton Hollifield, BSC executive director-treasurer, said the new facility will support the convention’s strategy of impacting lostness through disciple-making, adding that numerous individuals who have attended an event at Caraway have come to faith in Christ or answered a call to ministry.

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Photo by K Brown

Milton Hollifield, executive director-treasurer of the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina, said the new facility will support the convention’s strategy of impacting lostness through disciple-making.

“We are here today to dedicate this facility to God’s glory,” Hollifield said. “We celebrate what God has done in the past, what He is doing in the present and what He is going to do in the future in this facility.”

Clay Warf, executive director of the North Carolina Baptist Foundation, recalled how Wyndolyn Hollifield and her husband gave generously to Baptist causes throughout their lives. She was a longtime member of First Baptist Church in Winston-Salem and served on the board of directors for Gardner-Webb University from 1992-95.

“Wyndolyn and her husband, Hughy, were models in Christian stewardship,” Warf said. “They lived simply, but they gave abundantly.”

The new $1.3 million, 7,000-square-foot auditorium that bears Hollifield’s name is located in front of Caraway’s main lodging and administrative facility, connected by a covered breezeway.

Hollifield Hall features state-of-the-art audiovisual equipment and can be configured to accommodate up to 300 guests in theater-style seating or 180 in classroom-style seating. Each year, Caraway welcomes more than 21,000 guests to its facility near Asheboro for conference and retreats. The new meeting space will provide even more opportunities for patrons.

The Hollifields provided generous gifts to North Carolina Baptist institutions and agencies over the years. One of those gifts established the Hollifield Leadership Center on Lake Hickory near Conover.

BSC sold Hollifield Leadership Center to the North Carolina Boy’s Academy, a division of Teen Challenge, in late 2013. Proceeds from the sale helped fund the construction of Hollifield Hall. Additional infrastructure upgrades were also made to accommodate the new building and to prepare for future facilities at Caraway.

The facility is the third building project in the past three years. Plans are already underway to expand Caraway even more.

5-13-15_BaltimoreUnity_WEB.jpg

Photo by K Brown

Caraway Conference Center has opened the doors of a new auditorium and meeting space named Hollifield Hall that allows an enhanced experience by guests who use the facility each year.

Don Warren, chairman of Caraway’s New Beginnings Capital Campaign, said fundraising is ongoing for the next two facilities at Caraway – a new multipurpose recreation building and a new housing unit. The new stand-alone housing unit will include between 16 and 24 new hotel-style bedrooms for guests.

The recreation building and housing unit represent the only two remaining goals out of an original list of 25 objectives that were part of Caraway’s capital campaign when it commenced, Warren said.

“You will never receive a greater return on investment than an investment in Caraway,” Warren said. “Our prayer of dedication is that all of the activities that take place here will point everyone to the cross.”

The addition of Hollifield Hall and the new facilities that are planned aren’t just about expanding Caraway’s facilities and capacity to serve more guests, said Caraway’s director, Jimmy Huffman.

“It’s not just about bricks and mortar,” Huffman said. “It’s about changed lives.”