AN EMOTIONAL song recorded by two choristers for Remembrance Day raised hundreds of pounds for the Royal British Legion within hours of going online.
The song “Only Remembered” was recorded by Startforth-based Euphoria community choir members Chris Coverdale and Owen Moody with the initial idea of raising £300 for the British Legion because of the negative impact of the Covid-19 pandemic the charity’s annual Poppy Appeal fundraiser.
Mr Moody said: “We recorded it on Tuesday (November 3) and it went live on the Thursday. We had done the £300 in four hours. I am really bowled over.”
Early last week it smashed through the raised target of £800. The sound for the recording was mixed by choir leader Amy Purvis, who created a video using images from both world wars.
Mr Moody said: “There are quite a lot of powerful images in the video and the song means a lot to me. It used to be quite a difficult song for me because I used to get emotional singing it.”
The song, which is famously part of the stage production of War Horse, was performed by Euphoria at Barnard Castle Methodist Church for the centenary commemoration for the end of the First World War, and Mr Coverdale and Mr Moody sang it together on a previous Remembrance Day at Firkin Alley micro pub, in Barnard Castle. It is particularly poignant for Mr Moody because he has a deep interest in the First World War and for the past 24 years has made an annual pilgrimage to France to visit war graves and battlefields. He said: “When you see those places, you are walking on hallowed ground. Remembrance isn’t just one day of the year for me, it is every day and it is for many people.”
People can see the video and contribute to the fundraising appeal by searching for “Owen and Chris – personal tribute for the Royal British Legion” on www.justgiving.com.
