The Byers Memorial Tower Chimes has been given to the Glory of God in loving memory of George “Buddy” and Diane Byers by their children, Lynn, Beth, and George Jr. and their families.

This gift is well suited to Buddy and Diane: it isn’t inanimate, but rather is observed only when special attention is directed to it. Buddy and Diane were anything but inanimate. Rather, they were sharp, dynamic, exciting, and fun people ~ always there and eager to visit, and to be heard. This gift isn’t a cold, still
monument. Instead, it is a living memorial that can be heard. Its golden voice rings out its beautiful message every day of the year.

Our “new” chimes were manufactured in 1924 by the J.C. Deagan Company (Chicago, IL) and installed at Central United Methodist Church in Springfield. This was a 10-chime set. Deagan manufactured about 439 sets of chimes between 1916 and 1958; most were installed in the 1920s. They varied in size from 1 to 97 solid bronze tubular chimes. Most sets comprise 10 to 16. Sadly, many have been replaced with electronic sounds, scrapped, or demolished ~ gone forever. Others that have been repaired or restored can be heard today. The closest surviving sets are in Bellefontaine, Newark, and at Capital University. We are very fortunate that the Byers family funded the complete restoration and installation of our chimes. It once again will share its golden voice with our church and our community.

Ours is a 16-chime set that is operable either automatically or manually, directly from the organ console. It is comprised of the ten chimes from Central and six additional chimes from a system once located in St. Mark's United Church of Christ (New Albany, IN). Dating from 1926, their system was removed and
stored in 1996. When Central ordered their chimes in 1924, it included only ten chimes and a little keyboard that was used to actuate them. A former pastor of
Central told me that a devout husband and wife team came daily to play them from the little keyboard at 12:00 noon for decades. Through negotiation with
our installer, we agreed that our system would include these additional six chimes and their strikers. The fortuitous possibility of including these additional chimes was thrilling because with them, our system would be nearly unlimited in the number of melodies it could play. Having only ten tones of the musical scale is limiting to the range of tunes that can be played. With 16 tones (13 semi-tones of the a complete scale plus three higher tones), nearly any tune can be played. The installation quote would be for a 16-chime set.

Our chime story is an interesting one about saving something worthy of being saved. We saved them from Central UMC in 2021 shortly after the church closed. It would soon be sold. After the closure, the Miami Valley District offered its contents for sale. In March (2021), our youth pastor at the time, Reverend Seth Evans, invited Tim Wilson to look.  Upon going through the building, it looked like its congregation just turned off the lights, locked the doors, left, and abandoned everything. It was a sad moment.

In the sanctuary. Tim noticed the 1964 Moller pipe organ and a 7-foot Steinway grand piano, both still in their places. Then Tim saw it... a little keyboard! He immediately recognized what it was. Even though it looked like a child’s toy, he knew better; it activated a set of Deagan chimes. Tim had completely forgotten about the Deagan chimes here at Central!  We walked to a room close by where we found an electronic chime system that replaced the Deagans. At that very moment, those electronic chimes began to peal the time. Its sterile, lifeless electronic sound was eerie… the system was still operating even though the church was abandoned.

With the little keyboard in mind, Tim looked for a switch to activate the chimes but found nothing. He was disappointed not to find the switch or see the chimes. It didn’t seem right to nose around much more, but he prayed they were still in the tower. While driving back to London, He thought of nothing but them! Tim called Pastor Leckrone and told him the story and asked who to call at the Conference office? He suggested Bill Bronson. Tim soon had the opportunity to inquire about the fate of the chimes, but Bill had no idea what Tim was even talking about. Tim welcomed the opportunity to educate him. His question was simple: Were they planning to sell the building and if so, would they consider donating the chimes to our church? Bill didn’t know but was willing to find out.

Our journey began in March (2021). Tim called and emailed Mr. Bronson weekly. His reply was the same: “Still going through the chain of command.” April, May, June, and July came and went. No news. Finally, in August, Tim received a call from the Director of Closed Church Operations. Someone’s job really has this title? Tim was dumbfounded. She shared good news. The Conference would donate the chimes to our church! And then the zinger: we had only two weeks to get them out because the building had been sold. Panic immediately set in! Having such little time instilled plenty, but having nothing more than a wing and a prayer to ever get them installed caused even more. At most, we had the chimes and all we had to do was get them out… in two weeks!

Tim called fellow member Linn VanWoerkom. Linn was quite excited to have a look and to consider what it would take to get the ten chimes and their strikers out… within two weeks. We ascended the tower and there they were, still hanging on their cast iron cradles on a very precarious stand with compromised wood. The chimes and strikers appeared to be in good shape. Tim finally found the switch to the power, turned it on, and scrambled down the precarious small ladder as fast as he could to the little keyboard to hit a few notes! They pealed and Tim was overcome with joy. They worked!

Tim immediately rallied the troops. Trustee Jamie Peart was on board to help. Amazingly, he had the next two weekends free and voluntold his son Luke to help. Over two short weekends in August (2021), Linn, Jamie, Luke, Kevin Lohr, Paul Richards, Ryan Boyle, Blake and Madison Hall, and Tim Wilson rescued the chimes from inevitable death. A great deal of muscle and sweat ~ and a thorough understanding of the laws of gravity ~ went into dismantling them, hoisting them down a small access hole, and down a series of narrow staircases. With the heaviest, lowest-sounding chime weighing over 750 pounds, the task was monumental. Once out, they were stored in Linn’s barn until spring (2022), when we moved them to the third bay of the church garage.

At some point in this process, Tim communicated with Top Rung Tower Chime Company about installing the chimes. Shortly after that, Jeff Crook of Chime Master (Lancaster, OH) contacted Tim. He had purchased Top Rung’s business and assets and wanted to know if we planned to move forward with the project. After an on-site preliminary consultation, he told Tim the chimes could easily be installed in our tower. He sent a proposal that included erecting a new rack that would straddle our existing ringing bell, restoring the striker mechanisms to our ten chimes plus the six additional ones, and installing them… and a quote. Though it seemed reasonable to Tim, given the amount of work and expertise it would require, it was a considerable sum. Panic returned when Tim recalled having
nothing more than that wing and a prayer to get them installed.

More stairs! Blake and Madison Hall, Luke Peart, Ryan Boyle, Jamie Peart, and Kevin Lohr

Enter the kind-hearted and ever-philanthropic Buddy Byers. In the fall (2023), an employee of Buddy’s arrived at Tim's office. He had been sent with a message: “Mr. Byers would like to see you.” But no reason was given! Tim had no idea why Buddy wanted to see him, other than perhaps a kind visit. November 7 at The Bluebird was scheduled. Upon arriving, Buddy addressed his thought straight-on. He wanted to know what he could do for the church, and shared that it “meant so much to Diane because she loved the church. What do you need for the building?” We discussed a few possibilities and Tim asked if he could gather up some specific details about the various projects that were discussed.

After preparing a letter with a list of potential projects for Buddy’s consideration, Tim hand delivered it to him and sent a copy to Lynn, his daughter. One of the projects was the installation of the chimes. Tim visited Buddy a few days before Thanksgiving (2023). He told Tim that he and the family would be happy to fund the restoration and installation of the Deagan chimes because he thought Diane would have enjoyed hearing them. Buddy passed away on December 6, 2023.

Five chimes and six strikers loaded in Linn's stock trailer

Lynn, George, and Beth knew of Buddy’s wish to fund the chime project and told us to proceed. Our wing and a prayer became Buddy and his family. They not only funded their actual restoration and installation, they also funded the expense of a consultation with a structural engineer, the necessary reinforcement of the tower, and the erection of a base for the chime rack. A contract was signed with Chime Master and they picked up the ten electric striker mechanisms in the spring (2024) for a full, museum-quality restoration.

Soon, installation plans began. David Mars (Mars Property Service) erected the base for the rack in the summer of 2025. This base and its support structure are vitally important to equal distribution of additional weight in the tower. Chime Master began erecting the rack and installing the chimes and strikers on October 15, 2025. A crane (with thanks to Lee Restoration) was needed to hoist the rack components, chimes, and their strikers up through the Fourth Street louvered opening of the tower. They finished on Friday, October 30 2025, not a moment too soon for the November 2nd 2025 re-dedication celebration!

After a few pictures appeared on social media, Carl Zimmerman, treasurer of the World Carillon Federation, contacted Tim Wilson to inquire about the installation. He wanted to include the details in their Deagan database and shared, that to his knowledge, our Deagan installation is the only one to save, relocate, and reinstall a set anywhere in the United States in the last 25 years!

The chimes are operated by Chime Master’s proprietary Advanced eXperience bell ringing system. This leading-edge technology in bell ringing automatically governs both the hourly toll and the playing various melodies. They’re also operable from the console of our Johnson & Son/Muller pipe organ. Much thanks go to our friends at Muller Pipe Organ Company (Croton, OH) for their expertise in the solid-state technology that makes this possible. Also, thanks to CIRES Electric (Springfield) for executing all electrical needs for the project. Though we have the little keyboard, which
will be displayed at the church, it won’t be functional to our chimes. Perhaps someone, someday, will see it and realize that there is a set of Deagan tower chimes at FUMC in London!

Thank you to the Byers family for this magnificent gift, given to the Glory of God. With these chimes our church is an ever-present beacon to our congregation and to our community. The time-marking peal is a community time guide. Their sound is a daily messenger of peace and solace, and a continual source of pride and inspiration to high thoughts and noble deeds to everyone who hears them.

Thank you!