Commuters passing through Waterloo station were treated to an impromptu carol concert when the choirs of Sherborne Girls and The Gryphon School sang on the station concourse.
The choir, numbering over a hundred with girls and boys aged between 11 and 18, serenaded shoppers and commuters with festive favourites in a bid to raise donations for food bank charities in Sherborne and Waterloo.
Mr John Jenkins, Director of Music at Sherborne Girls, said: “The response from commuters and station staff was amazingly supportive. The whole concourse echoed to traditional carol singing and we are certain that commuters continued their journey with their spirits raised.”
Mr Val Mizen, Head of Music at The Gryphon School, added: “The pupils performed beautifully together, and they did a marvellous job of representing Sherborne town. We are also so pleased to be able to raise awareness of the food bank charities and highlight the essential work they carry out.
"Our most sincere thanks to our School leadership for letting us attend, to Chris Loder and South Western Railways for their generous support, to Waterloo Station itself for accommodating around 140 singers and an organ to our wonderful colleagues from Sherborne Girls' Music Department who always make this joint venture such a pleasure, to the wonderful Team of Gryphon Staff, to the very people of London for their generous donations, and finally to the wonderful students of both Schools whop volunteered their time and energy for such a worthy cause - especially with Christmas fast approaching."
Waterloo Foodbank’s Rebekah Gibson said: “At Waterloo Foodbank we have loved working in partnership with Sherborne Foodbank, to raise money to support people in crisis this Christmas. We were amazed at the generosity of the public and the fantastic choirs that made this event such a success!”
After two hours of singing, the amount raised from passers-by and train commuters totalled more than £3,800, which is a magnificent result and will be shared between the Sherborne and Waterloo Food Bank charities.
Chris Loder, Head of Service Strategy for South Western Railway (and old boy of The Gryphon School), said: “The choirs gave the UK’s busiest railway station a unique atmosphere with people stopping to listen, applaud and donate to charity – a winning combination. We were delighted to make this possible”.
For more information on the charities see: www.sherbornefoodbank.org
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For more information please contact Mrs Kate Cox, Marketing Manager, Sherborne Girls on [email protected] or 01935 818262