Launched in 2019 as a contest for a US church to win a free sound and lighting system (valued up to US$200,000), the third season of #FreeChurchAV in now underway, and has attracted a record number of entrants. The company behind the initiative is Arizona-based AV & Lighting integrator 5 Words Media (5WM), with Silver Sponsors including RF Venue, Shure, Marshall and Allen & Heath.

‘When I started 5 Words Media almost ten years ago, we set out to create an A/V & Lighting integrator that ministered to the local church in a profound and impactful way,’ explains Daniel Gourley. ‘5WM has created an amazing and Christ-centred process that provides solutions for churches each and every day. This heartfelt approach can not 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, the Hope Church in Danville, Virginia, was awarded a new system featuring video and lighting gear from manufacturers like Coda Audio, Elation Lighting, Roland Video, Thor: AV and Marshall. Season 2’s prize went to the Ohana Baptist Church in Honolulu, which edged out over 900 total applicants for a prize that included an Allen & Heath SQ Series console, sporting the latest 96kHz XCVI core processing.

Built for 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,’ says Allen & Heath USA Marketing Director, Jeff Hawley. ‘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.’