Riverside, Calif. (Sept. 30, 2014) –Nearly 200 nursing students were among those who gathered Sept. 25 for the dedication of the Nursing Annex and the Robert and Phoebe Lambeth Prayer Garden at California Baptist University.

The annex nearly triples the space available for classrooms and laboratories for the nursing school that was established in 2005 and now numbers 597 students.

In remarks at the dedication, CBU President Ronald L. Ellis spoke about the growth of the School of Nursing and acknowledged the generosity of Robert and Phoebe Lambeth for their decades of financial support of CBU. The Lambeth's attended the ceremony along with their son, Pike, and his family.

The Robert and Phoebe Lambeth Prayer Garden provides students a place for quiet reflection. Inscribed on a fountain in the garden are the words of Matthew 25:35-40, in which Jesus speaks about feeding the hungry and visiting the sick. Ellis noted the scripture fits well with the school because nurses serve those in need.

Dr. Geneva Oaks, dean of the School of Nursing, offered the prayer of dedication at the ceremony.

Phoebe Lambeth, who is also a CBU trustee, reflected on the dedication of the garden.

"It was lovely and touching," she said. "I was so glad our family was there to see it and to see what it means to us."

Following the dedication and ribbon cutting, attendees toured the prayer garden and the Nursing Annex classrooms, offices and state-of-the-art labs, as well as a simulation room designed to give nursing students realistic clinical scenarios.