AN appeal has been launched to help save a 103-year-old pipe organ at St Mark’s Church in Upper Hale.

The organ, affectionately named Emily after its original benefactor Emily Mangles, is in desperate need of a complete overhaul costing an estimated £23,000.

And to help raise funds for the essential repairs, St Mark’s Church is offering people the chance to ‘Sponsor a Pipe’ this Christmas.

“Emily is a beautiful Edwardian pipe organ but sadly, she has been used very rarely over the past three years because after a century of service she is in need of a complete overhaul,” said Reverend Lesley Crawley, a priest at St Mark’s.

“St Mark’s was built in 1883 by the people of Hale, the poorest parish in the then-Diocese of Winchester. It is truly the people’s church and Emily is a huge part of that.”

To bring the organ back to useable condition, Rev Crawley said she needs to be dismantled, her leatherworks replaced and warped wooden parts machined.

The 524 pipes also need to be cleaned and a handful of them replaced, and then finally she will need to be tuned.

However, the church urgently needs help funding the work and supporters can sponsor a 4ft pipe for £15, an 8ft pipe for £30 or a 16ft pipe for £60.

Rev Crawley continued: “If every pipe was sponsored, that would raise around £14,000 alone - leaving us just £9,000 to seek from grant-making bodies.

“People can sponsor a pipe in memory of a loved one, as a Christmas present or just because they want to help preserve a part of Farnham’s heritage.

“And once Emily is restored she will be available for community events and concerts, and children who are learning the organ will be able to practise on her once again.”

Pipes can be sponsored anonymously, and those sponsoring them will be able to write who they are sponsoring it for. They will receive a certificate and the church will display all the names and notes that people write on a ‘Sponsoring a Pipe’ manuscript.

There will also be a celebratory concert once Emily has been restored, to which all those who have sponsored a pipe will be invited.

To sponsor a pipe send a note of who you are dedicating it to and a donation (payable to The Parish of Badshot Lea and Hale PCC) to St Mark’s Church, Alma Lane, Farnham, GU9 0LT.

For further information or to ensure the donation is Gift-Aided, call Rev Crawley on 01252 820537.