HARWELL parishioners are appealing to relatives across the pond to help fund a restoration project for their 900-year-old church.

Steeped in history, with references dating back to the 12th and 13th centuries, St Matthew's Church is undergoing £9,000 worth of repairs to restore part of its outer walls.

To help foot the bill, the community is appealing for funding help in America, as it is believed ancestors of the ancient village settled there hundreds of years ago.

Tony Hughes, chairman of the buildings committee, said: "We need all the help that we can get to support our efforts and to make sure that this lovely building is still there when we have gone, and is kept up and developed so that it can continue to be very much the heart and soul of Harwell.

"The village has been here for a thousand years and the church for nearly all of that time.

"Widening our circle of Friends of St. Matthew’s could really make a difference to its future."

The church has its own facebook page, 'The Harwell St Matthew's Friends Facebook' which allows the church to keep in touch with the 500 plus American descendants of Thomas Foulk Harwell.

Thomas had sailed to America as a colonist in 1636 and his modern-day family can be traced across many of the southern states in the US.

Mr Hughes, who has lived in the village for more than 45 years, added: "There were a lot of people who had lived in or near the village whose surname was Harwell or Harewell.

"They went to America with the pilgrim fathers and multiplied enormously and there are lots of people with the surname Harwell."

In 1981 Thomas' descendants donated a commemorative window to the church.

Mr Hughes said: "It is quite important that we do keep the church building in good condition, partly because it is a historical building and partly because this is still very much the heart of the community.

"I am very conscious that this is becoming more precarious as fewer people now have the time and skills to ‘do it yourself’ and many tasks these days require expensive professional input to satisfy statutory requirements.

"Gone are the days when many of the men in the village worked locally as artisans and turned their hand to similar jobs on the church at the end of their normal working day."

Church member Liz Roberts added: "We’re hoping our targeted campaign has landed in the inbox of Americans by the name of Harwell who’d like to make a lasting financial contribution to the English village of their ancestors.

"Who knows – our post might even help the US Harwell families discover more members."

For more information or to make a donation contact: office@harwellandchiltonchurches.org.uk