MUNCIE, Ind. - Over the last half century, David and Mary Jane Sursa have gone from serving as volunteer ticket salespeople in the lobby of Ball State University's old Library and Assembly Hall to having a new music performance hall named after them.

The Board of Trustees approved a resolution Monday to name the performance hall in the new Music Instruction Building in honor of the Muncie natives who have made numerous contributions to the local arts.

Board President Thomas DeWeese recognized the Sursas at the groundbreaking ceremony for the facility at the southeast corner of McKinley and Riverside avenues.

"David and Mary Jane Sursa have been generous supporters, as well as active advocates for the arts at the university, in the community and around the state for nearly 50 years," DeWeese said. "Always quietly, never seeking to bring attention to themselves, the Sursas have given us a gift of truth and beauty that far surpasses the tangible contributions that they have made to their community."

The couple's most recent gift was the $2.5 million David and Mary Jane Sursa Fine Arts Endowment to fund student scholarships, a fine arts exhibit series and a visiting artist program. In the early 90s, they established the Sursa Distinguished Professorship in Fine Arts.

David Sursa said he and his wife are honored by the recognition and thrilled that the community will have a new performance venue.

"This hall will better accommodate an audience for performances that are smaller and more intimate," Sursa said. "This fills a needed niche in Muncie that Emens Auditorium can't quite fill because of its large size."

The David and Mary Jane Sursa Performance Hall will hold 600 seats and be used for rehearsals, performances and recording. In comparison, Emens has 3,400 seats.

Together and separately the Sursas have served in numerous arts organizations such as the Friends of the Ball State Museum of Art, the Indiana Arts Commission, the Indiana Committee for the Humanities, Muncie Symphony Orchestra, WIPB Public Television, Muncie Art Student's League and the Community Foundation of Muncie and Delaware County.

In 1948 after earning a master's degree from Harvard, David Sursa joined his father at the Industrial Trust & Savings Bank in Muncie. Following his father's death, he became president in 1951 at age 26 and served in that position for many years. The bank eventually became NBD Bankcorp, Inc. of Detroit and is now Bank One.

Mary Jane Sursa is a graduate of the Methodist Hospital School of Nursing and started work as an emergency room nurse at Ball Memorial Hospital, where she still volunteers.

In 1998, the Sursas were awarded the President's Medal for contributions to the university and community.

David Sursa recalls vividly the early days of the Muncie Symphony Orchestra and concerts in the 1,100-seat Library and Assembly Hall in the North Quad building.

"I was the first volunteer business manager, and Mary Jane and I would sit out in the lobby selling tickets before each concert," he said.

(NOTE TO EDITORS: For more information, contact Don Park, vice president for University Advancement, at (765) 285-1633 or dpark@bsu.edu.)