Avid animal lovers, music enthusiasts and charity-minded people are encouraged to come out to the 1st Tuesday Fundraiser at the Mex Pub on March 6 to support the work of the Mountainaire Avian Rescue Society (MARS).
The featured guest performer will be singer/songwriter Jack Sigurdson.
MARS is a local non-profit group that works to provide wildlife rescue services and education to the public on matters of conservation and other issues that affect local wildlife species.
The evening starts at 7:30 and admission is by donation, or people can also bring non-perishable food items in support of the Comox Valley Food Bank Society.
Sigurdson is a local songwriter who moved to the Comox Valley in 2010 from Prince Rupert where he was an active member of the coastal music scene. He won his first songwriting competition in 2008 with a composition called Coming Home, which was included on the Prince Rupert Centennial CD and focused on some of the local struggles of the area at the time.
Sigurdson is in the process of recording his first CD at Woodshop Recording Studios and will be performing some of the songs from the album, as well as a few of his favourite covers. Sigurdson will be joined on Tuesday by percussionist Corinne Parker, violinist Blaine Dunaway, Sue Pyper on the banjo, and the Wingtones consisting of guitarist Mark Wing, bassist Bruce Wing, and Judy Wing on harmony vocals.
“I’m very thankful for the encouragement and guidance from the local musicians in the Comox Valley,” says Sigurdson, who attends the jams and musical events whenever he can. “The musical talent in the valley is second to none.”
The Mountainaire Avian Rescue Society is a group dedicated to the rescue, care, and rehabilitation of raptors (eagles, owls, hawks, osprey), songbirds, waterfowl, and mammals such as bats, raccoons, and mink.
These injured or sick animals and birds are rescued from all over the northern part of Vancouver Island from Courtenay to Gold River, Port Hardy and Alert Bay as well as the northern Gulf Islands and Sunshine Coast. Many of their patients during the spring and summer months are young and vulnerable, e.g., baby birds, seal pups, and fawns.
Like other volunteer groups, MARS volunteers donate hours not only to meet the group’s objectives, but also spend a great deal of time and energy fundraising to pay for operating expenses. Fundraising events initiated by others in the community are much appreciated.
The 1st Tuesday Fundraiser events are part of an ongoing concert series sponsored by the Mex Pub. The series features local musicians supporting local causes on the first Tuesday of each month.
For more information, visit www.judyandbruce.com or www.mexpub.ca.
— 1st Tuesday Fundraisers
