Brazil resident Mike Varvel will help restore the clock at Russellville Town Hall that was designed to be used to ring a bell to summon kids to the school. Courtesy Photo. [Click to enlarge]

In another life, folks around town say the treasured timepiece once powered the bells at the old Russellville schoolhouse.

The clock was built in 1910 by Julis Hanson, a German immigrant living in Princeton, Ind. It's been said that the principal of the Russellville school, at the time, asked Hanson to make a clock that could be used to ring the bell that would summon kids to school.

There it hung until slipping into a state of disrepair and being moved to the Russellville Town Hall.

Not wanting to see a good thing go to waste, Mike Varvel -- a resident of Brazil -- has offered his expertise to restore the clock to its original glory.

Varvel is a contract operator for water testing in Russellville, but he's had his eye on the clock for some time. He has been working on clocks ever since he was a teenager and is formally trained in clockwork repairs by the American Watch and Clockmakers Institute.

"I was always too busy making a living to do what I really wanted to do," Varvel said.

The work will take about a month to complete.

"When I work on a restoration project, I try to keep it period correct," Varvel said. "That means sometimes I have to manufacture my own parts if I can't find them elsewhere."

Varvel believes just from looking at the clock that it needs disassembled, cleaned and re-oiled. More issues may arise once he begins the actual work though.

Normally, such a job would cost a bare minimum of $300, but Varvel is offering his services for free.

"I wanted to do something to give back to this community," Varvel said. "They are such nice people."

Varvel has built one clock in the past and is currently building a grandfather clock. He hopes to make a clock repair business out of his home in the upcoming months.