Singers hit the right note to raise £2310 for charity

Feb 19 2009 by Shirley Bartynek, Hamilton Advertiser

Singers hit the right note to raise £2310 for charity

TWO talented Lanarkshire singers last week helped to raise more than £2000 for charity.

Opera singer Heather Ewart from Strathaven and Kirsty Robertson of Bothwell were delighted to perform in front of a packed audience at Hamilton College.

They joined with the Clydebank Citadel Salvation Army Brass Band to perform in the concert entitled Songs of Joy in a bid to raise funds for the Maxie Richards Foundation.

The foundation was set up to advance, educate and inform people in Scotland and the rest of the United Kingdom about the misuse of illicit and prescribed drugs, alcohol and tobacco, and to relieve the suffering and stress of people addicted to such drugs.

Maxie, who lives in Bearsden, is a Christian campaigner for a drug-free country.

In 1986 she began voluntary work among addicts in Possilpark, Glasgow, in a refuge set up by three Christian denominations.

In 1994 she was awarded "Scotswoman of the Year" for her compassionate intervention in relation to drug-addicted people and their families.

The foundation has enabled Maxie to raise enough funds to open Kings Court in Tighnabruaich, where young men are given the chance to start life over again free from drugs.

All the time she has young people staying in her home, helping, encouraging, and supporting them as they kick their habit.

The concert was organised by Strathaven woman Dorothy Crawford, who admires the work Maxie has been doing.

Dorothy said: “The work she has done to help these young people to get their lives back is just amazing.

“Maxie values all human life – she sees the addicts as real people trapped inside an addiction.

“She is now saving up to buy a house suitable for women who want to recover from addiction.”

Around 450 people packed into the college hall last week to watch Hamilton College pupil Kirsty Robertson (17) perform “Fields of Gold.”

Heather Ewart also impressed the audience with her rendition of “He Lifts Me Up.”

The brass band played a variety of different arrangements, offering something for everyone.

Songs of Joy ended with a standing ovation and raised £2310.