Holy Redeemer Catholic Church, Grand Rapids, MI
Holy Redeemer Catholic Church near Grand Rapids, Michigan, needed more light, more color, and more control—but didn’t have the budget for a complete overhaul. Using flexible lighting solutions from ETC, they were able to get a whole new look without installing a new system.
To add more illumination, David Kolenda of West Michigan Lighting and Controls replaced incandescent fixtures with ETC Desire D22 fixtures, featuring a Lustr+ color LED array in the track surrounding the altar. ColorSource Spots and PARs were used to add accents and highlights.
“All the fixtures output automatically calibrated color so they get an even field from all the fixtures.”
David Kolenda, Theatrical/Controls Specialist, West Michigan Lighting and Controls, Grand Rapids, MI
“They loved the D22’s and ColorSource fixtures—especially with the color tuning,” says Kolenda. “All the fixtures output automatically calibrated color so they get an even field from all the fixtures.”
The color also offers them more possibilities in the space. When children present scripture plays on the altar, or holidays require a little extra emphasis, the color adds extra vibrancy. The church, too, is reportedly thrilled with the intensity of the fixtures.
“They kept wanting to turn the lights down, the LEDs were so bright compared to what they were used to," Kolenda says. "They’re only running at 17% of output. They’re amazed at the variety of levels that they couldn’t get with incandescent.”
Church staff was also pleasantly surprised that they didn’t need to upgrade their ETC Paradigm system, even though it was nearly a decade old. Kolenda designed new menus for the Paradigm Touchscreen controllers, letting the church control all the new looks and colors from the same system they were used to.
Kolenda notes that ETC’s extensive variety of fixtures, at all price points, and robust controls gave Holy Redeemer more looks, more light, and more value.
For more information, visit etcconnect.com.
