Halfway Harmony Choir proud to support Action Mesothelioma Day
The Halfway Harmony choir from Rame was proud, once again, to be associated with Action Mesothelioma Day on 1 July 2016. The event, held every year at Saltram House in Plymouth, is a tribute to all those people, past and present, who have been affected by asbestos related cancer.
Spokesperson for the choir Douglas Gillon said: ‘It’s a cause close to our hearts, with two choir members (both former dockyard workers) having fallen victim to the disease.’
The songs performed this year at Saltram were standard and much-loved items from the choir’s repertoire, in particular their signature number, ‘Minnadhu Breaks’, which is in much demand at weddings - and funerals.
It was composed by local singer/song-writer Pete Stanniforth and reflects the sentiments of an exile from East Cornwall recalling his homeland.
Many of the area’s features are described in its haunting lyrics: including Penlee, Rame, the Breakwater, Kingsand Clock-tower, and Whitsand Bay. The Minnadhu Breaks themselves are the rocks on the foreshore below Mount Edgcumbe estate.
Other numbers included ‘Country Roads’ (in which the late John Denver wrote about returning to his home in West Virginia), and a second Denver number, ‘Annie’s Song’, written at the top of a Colorado ski-lift as a tribute to his wife.
Whilst floral tributes were laid on the commemorative tree in memory of loved ones, the choir also sang ‘Smile awhile’ and ‘Softly as I leave you’ (a song made famous by Matt Monro).
Almost all of the choir’s concerts and appearances are undertaken for charity and good causes. They have raised more than £8000 in the past year alone.
The Rame Peninsula Male Voice Choir, from whom Halfway Harmony is exclusively drawn, recently won the President’s Plate which is presented by the Cornish Federation of Male Voice Choirs to the choir which has done most to promote singing in their community.
Specialist Mesothelioma Nurse Christine Jones said: 'Members of the South West Mesothelioma Support Group look forward to the choir’s attendance at future events and as always, are extremely grateful for their ongoing and very generous support.'
