Behind the Camera

October 19, 2020 | Articles

Learn a little more about who’s behind the camera during worship each week from Beth Henkel, our Video Production Specialist. We are so grateful for all the hard work she and the rest of the team do each week to bring our worship services to us at home!

"Like many of us, the pandemic changed the way I work completely. At the end of the summer in 2019, I joined the staff at FUMCA as a part-time video specialist helping tell the stories of our church through video. Then the pandemic hit and we started doing what I call "TV church" which is something I definitely was not prepared for in many ways, and we simply didn’t have the equipment we needed to do a quality worship service week in and week out. But, with my husband, Al Henkel leading the way, we set up a system that worked.

The church, through generous donations from the congregation, purchased equipment and we began recording and editing weekly worship services. We tweaked and added and refined, and you, wonderful viewers, had grace when we didn’t quite hit the mark. So I want to thank you for your patience, for your ideas on how to improve and for your continued support.

I also want to thank three new team members with connections to UTA’s Communications Department. Andrea Ayers is a graduate student, Jacki Reininga graduated May 2020 and Ivan Martha is currently taking classes there. They have cheerfully helped me with every aspect from setup, recording, editing and uploading. In addition, much gratitude to Roger Stephens, who is a great help in trouble-shooting the audio challenges. And Mary Gibson provides graphic support, writes subtitles, and is the social media master who makes sure what we produce gets out to everyone. And of course, Al Henkel, who is usually somewhere other than Arlington covering the news. The pandemic meant that he was home for several months and able to offer expertise and guidance right when I needed it.

The FUMCA staff has been so wonderful and adaptable during a difficult time and will try almost anything I asked of them. They are a resilient and caring group and I am glad to call them my colleagues.

So thanks everyone for your support as we continue to share the glory of God and his promises through video, until we meet in person again."

Beth Henkel