Money from music night will go to children’s trust

EVEN as she fought a desperate battle with cancer, Verity Young never lost her love of music.

Now her parents, who lost their eight-year-old daughter in 2009, are to celebrate that love by teaming up with organisers at one of the Capital’s longest standing live-music nights in a bid to raise new funds for sick children’s art therapy.

Laura and John Young, who set up the Teapot Trust after their daughter’s death, said the proceeds from a special Jam N Jar event later this year will allow them to consider expanding services in Edinburgh and across Scotland.

The Jam N Jar has been bringing live music stalwarts from the Capital and further afield together since it was established by Colm O’Brien and Tony Jack 15 years ago.

The Youngs said that the 
collaboration was a “unique development” in the short history of the trust, but one of which their daughter would have approved.

Laura, 44, a freelance project manager who lives with John, 47, and their two girls Nina, 12, and Isla, six, in the East Lothian town of Gullane, said: “Verity absolutely loved music and this gig certainly hits the right note for us.

“She adored Amy Macdonald and pleaded to be taken to her gigs but at the age of eight, it just wasn’t really an option. She also used to make guitars out of margarine pots with rubber bands around. She would have loved the idea of the trust teaming up with a music night like this and would particularly have loved the idea of me and her dad getting up to bop and make fools of ourselves.”

She said the offer of help from organisers at Jam N Jar had come at a crucial time for the trust, which was set up by the couple a year ago.

She said: “We had been looking for a way of celebrating our first birthday and we wanted a big push to keep our services going. We have expanded to the Yorkhill hospital in Glasgow and have had a taster session in Aberdeen. Provided that we keep getting support, we would look to expand on this.”

Norval Barclay, who recently took over as organiser of Jam N Jar, said the session would take place on December 2 at the Voodoo Rooms and that Jam N Jar had been started to raise money for children.

He added: “The night has always been about kids – they’ve always been at the heart of it.”