BLUEFIELD—Bluefield College's 42-year-old Harman Chapel is moving into the 21st century, thanks to a donor's desire to bring state-of-the-art multimedia presentation devices to the facility.
Thanks to a sizable contribution from BC alumna and trustee Susan McDougle Tussey and her husband, Ted, the college was able to purchase and install three multimedia projectors and screens inside the chapel, along with other devices capable of using a variety of media, including video and music, for presentations.
The new technology, according to BC officials, eliminates the challenges that existed in the facility to provide advanced programming based on state-of-the-art multimedia.
The chapel has served for more than four decades as home to the school's weekly student convocation programs, performing arts series, guest lectures, contemporary Christian concerts, Fine Arts Community School, Christian Emphasis Week and drama performances, among other events. The facility also has been home to the area's Community Concert Series, benefit concerts, secondary school programs, summer Christian youth camps, and conferences.
The college began a multi-phase half-million dollar renovation of the structure in 2003, the first for the facility since its construction in 1965.
Susan Tussey worked for nearly 30 years as a public school teacher in Henrico County before recently retiring. Ted Tussey is a minister of seniors, service and outreach at Cool Spring Baptist Church in Mechanicsville.