From the Rector's Column, April 2006 Pohick Post

One issue that has arisen during these discussions [with parishioners at Coffee Hour] concerns the ability to hear the liturgy and sermon during church services. This is not a new concern. When confronted by it in the past, however, I’ve addressed it by reminding the clergy and LEMs to project their voices during the service.

While that has helped to some degree, the problem has never really gone away. For starters, the church has some acoustic “dead spots” that make it hard for parishioners seated there to hear. What’s more, during well-attended services, the extra bodies present tend to absorb the sound even more. Finally - let’s face it - as we get older, we’re not hearing as well as we used to.

These factors have led me to propose to the Vestry that we consider the possibility of adding a sound system to the church.

The idea is not without precedent. During the final years of the Rev. Albert Jones’ tenure, the congregation employed a rather crude sound system to amplify his weakened voice.

Since then, acoustic technology has advanced by leaps and bounds, not only enabling microphones and speakers to be nearly invisible, but also vastly improving the quality of the sound output. Many historic churches now employ such systems, while still preserving the architectural integrity of their worship space.

But before the Vestry takes any further action on this matter, we’d like to hear from you. If you haven’t already filled out one of the surveys that have been circulated on Sunday mornings, please take a moment to complete the form included in this month’s Pohick Post. When you’ve finished it, either mail it in or drop it by the church office.

Once we’ve received a significant number of these surveys, we’ll tally them up, read the comments and then go from there. We’ll report these back to you in subsequent editions of the Post.

From the Rector's Column, May 2006 Pohick Post

After distributing the Audio System Survey over two Sundays and in last month’s Pohick Post, we received 133 responses. Of these, 102 (77%) were in favor of adding a sound system to the Church, while 31 (23%) were opposed. One third of the respondents indicated that they had difficulty hearing during the services, which many of them elaborated upon in their comments. More than two-thirds of those replying indicated that they would be willing to contribute funds to underwrite such a system. Among both those for and against the proposed addition, there was concern expressed that it not detract from the historic look of our church. In addition, a number of respondents stated their desire that any system have a high-quality, authentic reproduction of the human voice.

After reviewing the results of the survey, the Vestry referred the matter to the Property Committee for exploration of various options that would meet the stated criteria, along with their price tags.

From the Rector's Column, November 2006 Pohick Post

Church Sound System. I wrote about this several months ago, and a subsequent survey found strong support for this initiative - so long as we keep the acoustics natural sounding and the amplification devices as invisible as possible. Working together, the Property Committee and the Historic Foundation have already met with one company and will be interviewing others shortly before comparing the options explored.

From the Jr. Warden's Report, June 2008 Pohick Post

After much research, visits to other churches, and many discussions, parishioners of Pohick Church will enjoy a new sound this summer. Quality speakers and wireless microphones will enable better listening for all. Contributions from Church members and The Pohick Church Historic Foundation will allow many to hear like never before. 

From the Sr. Warden's Report, June 2008 Pohick Post

Wayne Biggs and Jeff Parker, Property, provided an estimate from Dorset Sound & Communications for the installation of a sound system in the Church building. The Vestry voted unanimously to install the system. Many thanks to Bill Wrench and the Historic Pohick Church Foundation (Pohick Inc.) for their work in making this happen.

From the Historic Foundation Column, June 2008 Pohick Post

The Historic Pohick Church Foundation is soliciting contributions to fund the installation of a sound system in the Church. Donations can be made in the form of a check to The Historic Pohick Church Foundation with the memo line designating “Sound System.” Please mail the check to Pohick Church, 9301 Richmond Hwy., Lorton, VA 22079.  Thanks for helping improve the quality of the Church!

Cost of the System: $19,000