ROCK STAR FRANCIS HELPS RAISE £8K

EGREMONT rock star Francis Dunnery has helped raise £8,000 from his annual fundraising weekend.

Francis returns home from the United States every year to host a weekend of fun, music and sport to raise money for The Charlie and Kathleen Dunnery Children’s Fund (CKDCF) – the charity he set up in memory of his parents.

The weekend, held from October 21 to 23, began with a party night at The Summergrove on the Friday, followed by a table tennis competition – won by Francis – at Whitehaven Sports Centre on the Saturday.

Francis and those signed to his Aquarian Nation label played a top concert in Egremont Market Hall on the Saturday night, and walkers braved the weather the following morning for a sponsored trek around Ennerdale Lake.

Mark Andrews, Francis’ friend and local fundraiser, said: “The weekend was great. We had people from worldwide as usual and a lot of hardy souls did the walk around the lake in pouring rain.

“Francis won the table tennis comp – as usual – but Rolf Krier Wiegand from Germany ran him close.

“The party night at The Summergrove was great and the gig at the Market Hall was superb too. Chris Difford, from Squeeze, drove up during his tour with Jools Holland to treat us to a new rendition of Cool For Cats”.

CKDCF has raised thousands of pounds over the years for the benefit of local children.

A member of The Rainbow Trust attended The Summergrove dinner to explain how the charity’s donations have helped families of children with cancer. To nominate a cause for a future donation visit www.ckdcf.org.

PUBLISHED NOVEMBER 3, 2011
Published in The Whitehaven News