By Tracey Arial
Verdun’s Crawford Park neighbourhood will be hopping on Friday night. Gospel singer songwriter guitar-playing musician Norm Rennie is teaming up with the Durham County Poets for a unique fundraising performance.
It will take place at 7:30 p.m., at the Southwest Church, 1445 Clemenceau. Tickets are $10 for the show. Another ten dollars gets you the VIP option, which includes dinner beginning at 6 p.m.
Rennie’s toe-tapping style of singing and preaching makes a great accompaniment to the Durham County Poets’ bluegrass style. The Ormstown-based folk group includes Kevin Harvey, David Whyte, Neil Elsmore, Carl Rufh and James Preimel. Together, they’ve released two albums so far: Where the River Flows and Chikkaboodah Stew.
Thanks to sponsorship and a poster from Marketing One-Man Band Jean-François Major, all the proceeds from Friday night’s concert are going to the Southwest Mission children’s music program.
For about a year now, Southwest’s music program has featured a new children’s choir made up of students from Verdun Elementary School. Once a week, the students have a healthy lunch together and then practice singing under the leadership of music director Sarah Fraser.
For more information about the Friday night fundraiser or to reserve tickets, contact Fraser at [450] 827-2829 or [514] 527-6699. You can also call the church office at [514] 768-6231.