Jessica George
Does it get any better than hearing a live musical performance while doing an afternoon of shopping?
The Eddie Coffey Group of Newfoundland is set to hit the parking lot at Wal-Mart here from noon-4 p.m. this Friday through Sunday to raise money for Canada’s woundedwarriors.ca—a charitable organization dedicated to providing personal amenities and support to wounded Canadian soldiers who are receiving medical care overseas.
The concerts at Wal-Mart are free to attend, but CDs and T-shirts will be for sale for $20 apiece, with 12.5 percent of the sales going to Wounded Warriors and another 12.5 percent going towards Wal-Mart’s local charity.
In the event of inclement weather, the shows still will go on, with the band either moving under a tent or inside the warmth of Wal-Mart.
The group also will be performing at the local Legion on Saturday night (Sept. 27). There will be a $10 cover charge, with $5 from every ticket purchased going straight to Wounded Warriors and the other $5 helping the band keep its tour going.
Eddie Coffey is a renowned musician who has been writing and performing his own songs for the past 40 years. In total, he has 32 albums to his credit, with 98 percent of it being his own material and the other two percent comprised of traditional folk music.
Coffey writes, performs lead vocals, and plays the accordion and guitar while Rhonda Stamp offers lead guitar. Harold O’Connell acts as manager, and also plays the “ugly stick” and the mouth organ.
The group traditionally frequented military bases to boost soldiers’ morale and Legion halls to pay their respects to the nation’s veterans. After the tragedy of Sept. 11, 2001, and learning some 230 Canadian civilians were killed in the terrorist attack, they decided to step into a supportive role.
They were introduced to Capt. Wayne Johnston, who is chairperson of the Wounded Warriors foundation.
They learned from him that wounded soldiers receiving medical care overseas are obliged to pay for hygiene products, pajamas, and slippers, and must pay $10 a day for a television set, among other things.
These costs are not covered by the federal government, and often these charges for simple amenities create a financial burden for the soldiers and their families.
The group felt this was an outrageous flaw and dedicated their next tour to raising money for the foundation so they could send care packages to the wounded soldiers that included pajamas, slippers, personal hygiene products, sweatshirts, blankets, T-shirts, books, and magazines—and even a TV set.
They buddied up with Wal-Mart and have been doing concerts in the name of the foundation for two years now.
To date, they’ve raised $4,000 with their Wal-Mart shows—and expect to have accumulated $10,000 by the end of the tour.
They stress this is not a politically-driven tour, but one that’s done in the name of the soldiers who are hospitalized in 16 countries around the world.
“They are 100 percent Canadian sons, daughters, brothers, husbands, wives, and parents and they need to have the respect from our country,” stressed O’Connell.
They group traditionally wears red on Fridays to show their support for the troops, and they invite local residents to do the same.
