A new home is being sought for the Walker Organ which is still in a reasonable playable condition but, in the words of Fabric Committee Chair and Churchwarden, John Hay, needs "TLC and someone who can give it a good new home". He said "We had to make the decision to replace the Walker Organ for a number of reasons, which has now taken St Mark's from Stone Age to Space Age". The renovation and cleaning was first recommended back in 2009 but fundraising didn't get underway until 2012. In 2017 it became clear that the target, then £60,000 couldn't be reached in a sensible timeframe. With a little over £35,000 and an ever increasing and rising projected cost of around £70,000 a new plan was hatched. A cheaper solution of going Digital was decided upon which had the added attractive benefits of being able to record music bespoke for services as there is a severe lack of full time available Organists. Also, the running costs for maintenance are negligible and there are no tuning costs unlike the Pipe Organ. The project then tried and tested some Digital Organs and ultimately chose the Viscount 2 years later.Both Vicar and Churchwardens are now trying to move the remainder of the project forward but the lack of an interested party to take the Walker Organ is holding back and delaying progress. John Hay said n" We seriously need to find someone to take the Walker Organ as soon as is practically possible. The Faculty to entirely remove it is in place and there's even an Organ Builder who is happy to take on any relocation". The Church will consider any reasonable offer. Just get in touch with the Churchwardens, Chair of the Fabric Committee or Vicar.
