A DEDICATED church organist recently staged his own musical marathon to help refurbish the unique 100-year-old instrument.

Father-of-two Jim Walsingham of Kilwinning Old Parish Church is spearheading a campaign to raise nearly £250,000 to refurbish the historic pipe organ.

Last weekend the Kilwinning man organised a sponsored play-in which involved him playing the entire Church of Scotland Hymnary. It took him nine hours.

Jim said: “The organ was built way back in 1897 and you can’t get anything like it now. I would say it’s simply irreplaceable.

“It’s not so much just about money it’s about raising awareness of the organ, which unlike some others is in its original condition. “Inside it there’s graffiti, in the form of names of people who played the organ. It really is quite a unique instrument.”

The North Ayrshire-based peripatetic music teacher was delighted, adding: “I played a lot on Saturday and then between the two services on Sunday and quite a few people came in to sing along, so it was good to have company.

“It’s a lot of hymns to play and when I turned the page I didn’t often know what was coming next but I knew the tunes of them before I looked at the music.

“The sponsored event helped raise £900 for the campaign and I’m delighted with that, as it means we raised about £100 an hour.

“Thanks to everyone who supported the fundraiser. My fingers were sore at the end but it was worthwhile.

“We will be planning more events to help raise funds for the appeal. So far we must have raised £5,000 to £6,000 through various ventures. It’s a fiveyear campaign.”

Anyone who would like to help should email Jim Walsingham: idolikecats@ aol.com.