Thursday 20th December 2007 – CBSO Festive Favourites with Aled Jones
£4,481.52 – The fantastic amount raised by everybody who has supported this year’s CBSO Festive Favourites Concert with Aled Jones! A BIG thank you to our friends and supporters from local businesses who bought tickets from us and came along to our special hospitality reception, the volunteers who helped out with the bucket collection, the generous public who donated and made our buckets heavy, Aled Jones, and of course the CBSO who have again supported St Basils this year.
The evening began with a heart-warming reception at Symphony Hall where guests enjoyed mulled wine and minced pies overlooking the lovely lit-up festive scene of Centenary Square with it’s special Christmas Ice Rink. The concert was the perfect way to start Christmas with wonderful carols and songs sang by Aled Jones and the CBSO choirs such as ‘Hark the Herald Angels Sing’ and the wonderful Snowman song ‘Walking in the Air’. During the concert Aled Jones gave this empassioned speech about St Basils;
If you listen to my Sunday morning show, you may remember that I have moved house this year. They say that moving home is one of the most stressful things in life – but can you imagine what it must be like not to have a home at all – especially at Christmas?
Christmas is one of the best times of the year – for most of us. It is a time of presents, fun, worship and family. But for some young people in Birmingham Christmas can be a difficult time.
There are the more than 350 young people who will be spending their Christmas with tonight’s charity, St Basils. St Basils is the largest organisation working with young people, 16-25 year olds, who are either homeless or at risk of homelessness.
For them Christmas can be a cruel reminder of the ties that they have lost with their families. A time, not of celebration, but of sadness. St Basils does what it can to make sure that all its residents have a good, traditional, Christmas but they realise that they are no substitute for a real family.
That is why all the money you donate tonight will go towards their Prevention Services, working with families and schools to try and prevent young people suffering the trauma of homelessness. Please help – every penny counts.
Remember that we are here celebrating the birth of a very special baby, a baby that was born homeless in a stranger’s barn, born to an unmarried mother and was soon to be a refugee. He knew what it was like to be without a home. Your gifts tonight can make sure that young people in and around Birmingham never have that experience.
Thank you to The Howard Butler Charitable Trust, Rev W Anderson, Perkins Slade, Susan Chilton, Michael Weston Smith, BHSF, Waterloo Housing, Mrs S Revans, Elaine Elkington and Mrs Andrews and all those who supported our pre-concert reception. Photo Gallery
A big thank you also to Dave Hill and The Wyre Forest Friendship Group who came along with 35 members.
Again, we could not carry on the work we do here at St Basils without your most generous support - Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!!
Rebecca Cheesman
Fundraising Officer
