CALEB SURFACE
Ohana Baptist Church in Honolulu, Hawaii edged out over 900 total applicants for the 2020 #FreeChurchAV prize.
Arizona-based AV & Lighting integrator 5 Words Media (5WM) launched #FreeChurchAV in 2019 as a contest for one lucky church to win a free sound and lighting system valued up to $200,000. With two years of the highly successful #FreeChurchAV promotion under their belt, Season 3 is well under way with a record number of entrants. Key Silver sponsors of #FreeChurchAV include RF Venue, Shure, Marshall and Allen & Heath.
"When I started 5 Words Media almost 10 years ago, we set out to create an AV & Lighting integrator that ministered to the local church in a profound and impactful way," says Daniel Gourley (5WM). "5WM has created an amazing and Christ-centered process that provides solutions for churches each and every day. This heartfelt approach cannot be shown more directly than with the creation of #FreeChurchAV where we reward one deserving church with the opportunity to start fresh, build new and enhance their ministry's message through advanced media technology.”
Season 1 winner Hope Church in Danville, Virginia was awarded a brand new system featuring video and lighting gear from manufacturers like Coda Audio, Elation Lighting, Roland Video, Thor: AV and Marshall. Season 2 winner Ohana Baptist Church in Honolulu, Hawaii edged out over 900 total applicants for the prize. Part of the prize package included an Allen & Heath SQ Series console, sporting the latest 96kHz XCVI core processing.
Noelle Sanbeck
Ohana Baptist's SQ-5 at broadcast, paired with an SQ-6 and a duo of DX168 16 XLR input / 8 XLR output 96kHz Portable DX Expanders.
Built for professionals in demanding live sound, recording and streaming applications, SQ delivers class-leading high-resolution audio with an ultra-low <0.7ms latency and access to the Allen & Heath ‘Everything I/O’ ecosystem. Ohana Baptist Church paired up an SQ-5 at broadcast along with an SQ-6 at FOH together with a duo of DX168 16 XLR input / 8 XLR output 96kHz Portable DX Expanders in their bespoke digital audio system design.
“We’ve been honored to be a part of the great work 5 Words Media is up to in their #FreeChurchAV contest,” notes Jeff Hawley, Allen & Heath USA Marketing Director. “Daniel and the team are pros and the sort of expertise and creativity they demonstrate in system designs for audio and video and lighting rigs is amazing. It has been a real pleasure to see the video reactions of the winning churches as they step up to new heights of technical capabilities with the winning gear package. We are rooting for the entrants in Season 3 and can’t wait to see who nabs the win next time around!”
For entry details, visit https://www.5wordsmedia.com/freechurchav.
