Franklin College receives donation to preserve historic chapel
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The estate of a Franklin College alumna is making a donation to the school to help preserve one of the campus’ iconic sites.
The estate of Connie Van Valer is donating $200,000 to start the Richardson Chapel Maintenance Fund. In a press release, Franklin College President Kerry Prather said the chapel serves a space for worship for multiple religious denominations and part of the campus’ culture.
“The establishment of the Richardson Chapel Maintenance Fund is a fitting tribute to Connie’s legacy—and that of the Richardson and Van Valer families—ensuring that Richardson Chapel remains a central feature of our campus and our institutional identity,” Prather said.
According to the college, Van Valer graduated from Franklin in 1959. She and her husband Joe (also a 1959 graduate) have been longtime supporters of Franklin College. Connie Van Valer also served as a Franklin trustee from 1999-2016. She died in April.
However, Van Valer’s roots at Franklin go beyond her time as a student. Her father—Rev. Harold Richardson—was Franklin’s president from 1949-1964. The school says Connie Van Valer and her sisters donated money for the chapel to be renovated in 2008, and at that time, the building was renamed to the Richardson Chapel.
The chapel was first built 1905 and serves as “a reminder of the college’s historic affiliation with the American Baptist Churches USA.”