http://itemonline.com/local/x328561316/First-Baptist-Church-acquires-9th-largest-pipe-organ-in-TX (http://itemonline.com/local/x328561316/First-Baptist-Church-acquires-9th-largest-pipe-organ-in-TX)
QuoteAs the First Baptist Church building provided much-needed shade, volunteers unloaded an 18-wheeler Wednesday morning carrying precious cargo.
FBC has acquired an Austin Pipe Organ Opus 1544, which will be professionally installed inside the church over the next few months. Dr. Jon Weygandt, FBC pastor, said he hopes to be able to use the pipe organ by Christmas.
"It's an ambitious goal, but it's a goal," he said, laughing. "What a blessing. We really want God to be glorified with it. It's about enhancing worship. We are very blessed. It's just unbelievable."
The organ is one of 28 of its kind in Texas and the ninth largest in the state. Once installed, it is estimated to be valued at nearly one million dollars.
"We're extremely excited. It's really a dream come true for the church," Weygandt. "They've been hoping for the opportunity to get a pipe organ for years. We have a wide range of folks showing up to help. It's a pretty exciting thing."
Weygandt said he thought acquiring a pipe organ was a "pipe dream." Once church members began searching for organs, the process simplified. Through an organ guild, the church learned about an Austin pipe organ that had been removed from a church in Glencoe, Ill.
"A man had purchased it from a church and stored it," Weygandt said. "He was going to build a 3,500 square foot building in order to put this organ at his home. It sat in storage for a few years and at 72, he didn't think it was wise for him to tackle such a project."
The man and his son disassembled the organ and got it ready for shipment to Huntsville where it was delivered Wednesday morning.
"It's a huge opportunity. We're told this will be the largest pipe organ between Houston and Dallas," Weygandt said. "A pipe organ produces a sound you feel. When you use an electronic organ it just mimics a pipe organ."
Weygandt said the organ has more than 6,000 pipes, three manuals, 30 ranks, and 21 chimes. Parts of the organ will be stored at the church, while larger pieces will be stored in a building space donated by Ben Bius.
For more information, call the church at (936) 291-3441.