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The story of a contractor with conviction and a church with dreams as big as Texas
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A building adjacent to Oak Ridge Baptist’s sanctuary houses the youth worship center that includes a game room and a café. Church offices and education space are also included in the outlying buildings. (Vanguard Sound & Lighting)
A new suburban church building with a modern design and high ceiling, a dynamic ministry looking to serve the community, a budget to meet and dealings with a local sound and lighting contractor—nothing unusual here, right? Wrong. This church has overcome some unusual adversity to continue into its 40th year and there’s something very different about this sound and lighting contractor, too.
The people at Vanguard Sound and Lighting in Rockwall, Texas, know first-hand about the needs of the church, as both the owner, Mike Wallace, and the project manager, Aaron Kincaid, are also pastors. Each brings years of experience in the ministry, as well as church staff experience, so these sound and lighting professionals have their roots (and 99% of their business) in the church market. Their combined experience and concern for their clients allows them to approach church business in a unique way, and their skills were just what was needed to help Oak Ridge Baptist Church accomplish its mission to be a developing fellowship of believers committed to sharing God’s love.
A Church with Perseverance and Vision
The lush suburbs off Texas’ I-45 just outside of Houston, the fourth most populous city in the nation, have been home to Oak Ridge Baptist Church since its inception in 1967. The church, however, has not always looked the same. With humble beginnings in a community center where its 30 original members gathered to worship, Oak Ridge became one of the fastest growing churches in Texas by 1977. The church served its 1,600 members well and had a bus ministry bringing over 100 children to Sunday School and services each week. For almost 20 years the church remained a staple of community life for the Oak Ridge area—until a silent adversary threatened to shut it down.
What could derail this important and long-standing ministry? The most unlikely of foes: mold. On August 10, 2000, when toxic mold was discovered inside the walls of offices in the sanctuary building, for their safety, the congregation was moved to a temporary home at a neighboring high school. After several years of holding services in schools and ongoing troubles with the old building, church members voted to demolish it, sell the property, and relocate with a new vision to grow the church and serve the community. After five years of struggles, the congregation got its wish and on November 13, 2005, broke ground on their new 37,000-square-foot building on 13 green acres. The new location is just blocks away from the community center in which the church began in 1967.
Today, with construction of their new facility recently completed and its sound, lighting, and media technology in place, regular attendance at Oak Ridge Baptist’s single Sunday service is already bumping 500. The congregation, young and old, is enjoying worship in a modern and dynamic 750-seat octagonal sanctuary, built to be expandable to seat 1,000. In addition, two buildings adjacent to the impressive sanctuary house a busy multi-purpose gymnasium and a facility for church offices, educational space, and a youth worship center that includes a game room with a café area for youth fellowship. Projection, lighting, and sound needs throughout the buildings were addressed by the professionals from Vanguard Sound and Lighting to be both effective and efficient.
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Andy McDonough is a freelance writer, photographer, musician, educator and consulting engineer based in Middletown, New Jersey. Among his favorite topics are the application of technology and music in houses of worship. He welcomes email at andymcd@comcast.net.
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