Jun 28, 2021 | Catholic Church Hearing Loops, Hearing Loops in Churches, News, Oklahoma Hearing Loops
Hearing Loops at New Catholic Shrine Site
Oklahoma Catholics with hearing loss will have the best sound in the house when they worship at the Blessed Stanley Rother Shrine next year. The site will house a 2,000 seat Catholic church, the largest in Oklahoma, as well as the Blessed Stanley Rother shrine and an educational complex. In addition to being the largest Catholic church in Oklahoma, the church and chapel on the shrine site will also include induction hearing loop technology for worshipers. The hearing loop systems will bring the Word of God directly to the ears of Catholic worshipers with hearing loss and eliminate the echo, reverberation, and ambient noise that often make hearing in church extremely difficult.
Why Catholic Churches Need Hearing Loop Technology
Traditionally, Catholic churches are beautifully cavernous structures with high ceilings and hard surfaces. Unfortunately, the construction of these spaces also causes sound to bounce, a factor that no amount of money spent on a sound system can overcome for a person with hearing loss. In these types of spaces, the ability to hear the Word clearly and intelligbly is nearly impossible for people with hearing loss unless a hearing assistive technology, such a s hearing loop, is utilized. With hearing loop technology, all of the peripheral sounds of a space are filtered out and the sound from the audio system comes directly to the user’s ear. With a telecoil-enabled hearing aid, the Word of the Lord comes directly to their hearing aid wearer’s ear, as clearly as if the Father was sitting on their shoulder giving the sermon! The user simply needs to switch their own personal hearing aid to the telecoil program in order to access the technology – there is no need for additional equipment. If a user does not have a telecoil-enabled hearing aid, then utilize a receiver, however, most people enjoy the system by simply using their own hearing aids.
Blessed Stanley Rother Catholic Church conceptual, courtesy of the Archdiocese of Oklahoma
Blessed Stanley Rother Catholic Church conceptual, courtesy of the Archdiocese of Oklahoma
The History of the Blessed Stanley Rother
Father Stanley Rother was born and raised in Okarche, Oklahoma in 1935. He joined the priesthood in 1963, and in the 1970s brought the Word to worshipers in the parish of Santiago Atitlan, Guatemala. While preaching in Guatemala, a civil war between the militarists and guerillas killed thousands of Catholics. Despite the threat to his safety, Father Rother continued to teach the Word and educate the people of Guatemala. In 1981, Father Rother was executed for his refusal to abandon his people in the time of war. He is the first martyer in the United States and the first U.S.-born priest to be beatified, according to the Archdiocese of Oklahoma. His heart remains enshrined in Guatemala to this day. Visit the website of the Archdiocese of Oklahoma at https://www.archokc.org/stanleyrother for his full biography.
Hearing Loops in Oklahoma Catholic Churches
Hearing loops are in many Catholic churches in the Oklahoma City corridor, including St. Thomas Moore in Norman, Holy Spirit in Mustang, and St. Eugene’s in Oklahoma City. When in the Tulsa area, Catholics with hearing can enjoy the Word through hearing loops located at the Catholic Church of St. Mary or Holy Family. Assist2Hear is the installer for all Oklahoma hearing loops listed, with the exception of Holy Family. For more Oklahoma hearing loop locations, click here .
Since 2010, Assist2Hear has been a leading national installer of induction hearing loop systems throughout the U.S. If your church would like a quote on a hearing loop, email us at info@assist2hear.com. For more information on how hearing loops can help people in your church better hear the Word, please visit our blog post Hearing Loop Systems in Churches.
For more information on the Blessed Stanley Rother Shrine, please visit the Catholic Diocese of Oklahoma’s dedicated page at https://archokc.org/shrine.
Aug 12, 2017 | News, Updates
Ana at the Catholic Church of Saint Mary during the hearing loop installation.
Tulsa Induction Loop Training
On Sunday, August 20th at 9:30 a.m., Ana Covey with Assist2Hear will be at at the beautiful Catholic Church of Saint Mary, 1347 E. 49th Place, Tulsa, Oklahoma, to host an induction loop training session to help parishioners learn to use the church’s new hearing loop system. Tulsans please join us if you have hearing loss and would like to learn more how induction loop systems can help you better hear the Word! Click here to view event information.
Hearing Loops in Churches
Assist2Hear specializes in the design and installation of induction hearing loop systems in churches, performing arts centers, classrooms, and public meeting places such as your local library or city council chambers. To get a free quote for a hearing loop system in your church or just learn more about hearing assistive technology in general, contact Assist2Hear today at info@assist2hear.com.
Aug 7, 2017 | Learning Center, News
Hearing Loops for Churches
Hearing loop systems in churches make sure that every word is heard AND understood. One of the major reasons many people get hearing aids is to hear better in church. Unfortunately, large rooms with many hard surfaces like churches are not hearing friendly. Even with the best sound system, reverberation and ambient noise are a huge problem for those with hearing loss and hearing aids.
Helping seniors hear better at church
Hearing loop systems in churches literally brings the sermon straight to the ear of the listener via their hearing aid! The sound is truly nothing short of amazing. One woman in Oklahoma City recently said “It felt as if the minister was sitting right next to me!” And there are no embarrassing headsets to check out- one uses their own hearing aids that are set for their own hearing loss!
Before induction loops, it was common for hearing-impaired parishioners to lose sound quality due to poor acoustics, sound blurring or feedback. Now, churches are paving the way to help the hard of hearing by installing hearing loops. The move isn’t just helping church-goers; it’s bringing back former church-goers who stopped going due to hearing issues. Why go to church if you have to struggle to hear the Word of God? And no one wants to announce their hearing loss with cumbersome headsets!
The miracle of hearing loops
For those who have not experienced a hearing loop system in a church, a hearing loop (also known as an induction loop) is a wireless device technology that works with telecoil hearing aids (almost all new hearing aids now have telecoils) and all cochlear implants to produce clear sound without feedback or background noise. Consisting of only three parts – an amplifier, microphone and very thin loop wire – hearing loops create a magnetic field that is picked up by any t-coil equipped hearing aid and converted to audible sound.
Unlike infrared and FM wireless hearing technologies, which have limits due to varying frequencies and require a receiver (i.e. a headset or neckloop), induction loops simply need a t-coil hearing aid or a cochlear implant. (Those without t-coils can also use compatible headsets.) Essentially, a hearing loop system helps the hearing aid do its job!
Hearing loops are already improving the lives of the hearing-impaired at home, in major entertainment venues and theaters, in public places (like pharmacies, banks and stores), and perhaps of most significance to many, in church. Please contact us for a free demonstration of a hearing loop system in your church today!
If you have a hearing aid or new cochlear implant, you’ll want to be kept in the loop – the HEARING loop, that is. To learn more about hearing loops for your church, visit Service: Hearing loops for Churches.
Have you experienced a hearing loop system in church? If so, please share with us how it has improved your ability to hear the Word during worship!