William Ashley Sunday (November 19, 1862– November 6, 1935) was a professional baseball player, born into poverty near Ames, Iowa, who became the best-known American evangelist during the first two decades of the 20^th century, attracting the largest crowds of any in American history before the advent of electronic amplification. His support of Prohibition likely played a significant role in the adoption of the Eighteen Amendment in 1919. Despite a twenty-year age difference, Sunday and Bob Jones respected each other’s gifts and were personal friends.

Helen Amelia “Nell” Thompson Sunday (June 25, 1868 – February 20, 1957), the wife of Billy Sunday, played an oversized role in organizing his huge evangelistic campaigns during the first decades of the twentieth century and served as a buffer between her naturally shy husband and the outside world, allowing him to concentrate on his preaching. After her husband died in 1935, Nell embarked on her own 22-year ministry, preaching, encouraging young evangelists, and raising money for Christian organizations. A residence hall on the BJU campus is named in her honor.