Grand Opening Celebration Held for David Allan Hubbard Library

Honoring Hubbard’s legacy, new library will be a place of learning and connection :: 05/18/09

See links at right for video coverage of the library opening events.

“This library will add so much to the scholarly life of this campus . . . and it will add a distinguished tribute to David Allan Hubbard,” said President Richard J. Mouw at the dedication and ribbon-cutting ceremony celebrating the opening of the David Allan Hubbard Library on Monday, May 18. Hundreds of students, faculty, alumni/ae, staff, and friends of Fuller were joined by the seminary’s Board of Trustees to celebrate the new library, which is named for Fuller’s beloved longtime president David Allan Hubbard.

“This new library will be a place where we record, in the words of Saint Anselm, ‘faith seeking understanding,’” said Associate Provost for Library Services David D. Bundy. “Located on the Pacific Rim, it will be a meeting place for the peoples of the world.”

The new Hubbard Library is a brand-new facility at the southwest corner of Fuller’s Pasadena campus, designed by renowned architect William McDonough and Partners, joined together with the former McAlister Library building, which has now been fully renovated. The new library adds 47,000 square feet to the former library’s 38,000, increasing the facility’s capacity to 1.4 million items—tripling its previous holdings potential.

The opening of the new library is not just an important step for Fuller Seminary, said Pasadena Mayor Bill Bogaard at the ceremony, but “it is also a gift to the city of Pasadena, a gift to the United States, and a gift to the world.”

Many spoke of the important tribute the library offers to the cherished legacy of David Allan Hubbard, Fuller’s president from 1963 to 1993 and an evangelical leader who highly valued learning and scholarship. “He was my hero,” said Fuller trustee John Ortberg, with “his love for the life of the mind . . . his thoughtfulness, and his humility.” “What better way to have Dr. Hubbard’s significant legacy remembered than to have a library named for him? It just fits,” commented Marianne Meye Thompson, George Eldon Ladd Professor of New Testament Interpretation. “We can think of no more fitting honor than to have a library established in his name . . . such an elegant and beautiful edifice as this,” said Robert Hubbard, alumnus and nephew of Dr. Hubbard, speaking on behalf of the Hubbard family.

Recognition was given to the many who supported construction of the new library. Well over 400 individuals have worked on the library project in some way, noted Howard Wilson, executive vice president for administration, and 175 weekly meetings went into its planning. “Hundreds of people have worked to make this building possible, and we are grateful,” stressed Associate Provost Bundy.

Joe Webb, vice president for seminary advancement, led a time of honoring the individuals and institutions who contributed significant gifts to the library. “These people have provided enormous inspiration and leadership to this project, and we want to thank them,” he said.

“To be part of this library is an act of gratitude and an investment,” said trustee Ortberg, who is senior pastor of Menlo Park Presbyterian Church, one of the library’s donors. Speaking on behalf of the many Fuller alumni/ae who have been part of his church over the years, “Our church has been shaped by Fuller,” he said, “and Fuller has been shaped by David Allan Hubbard.”

“It is with profound gratitude to the memory of David Allan Hubbard that we consecrate this library,” proclaimed Lloyd John Ogilvie, renowned preacher and founder of the Ogilvie Institute of Preaching at Fuller, in a closing prayer of dedication. “We pray for those who will study here, that they will become bold, brave, and passionate communicators of the gospel.”

To see updates and photos of the library dedication and a tour on Twitter, visit www.twitter.com/fulleradm .