Unison Benevolent Fund Events Raise $75,000 For Musicians and Industry Members

By Aaron Brophy 7/12/16 | www.samaritanmag.com

I Mother Earth perform at Unison Jam 2 — photo credit: Barry Roden
The Unison Benevolent Fund has raised more than $75,000 from two June fundraising events to support Canadian music industry professionals in times of crisis.

Created in 2010 by Canadian music industry veterans Jodie Ferneyhough and Catharine Saxberg, the Unison Benevolent Fund is a non-profit, registered charity that provides counselling and emergency relief services to the Canadian music community in areas such as mental health support, managing relationships and family life, finding child and elder care resources, legal advice, financial guidance, workplace challenges, tackling addictions, improving nutrition and health improvement.

The two events that helped earned Unison some much needed money were the Unison Jam 2, a special benefit concert event at Toronto's Phoenix Concert Theatre on June 16 and the 2016 Canadian Entertainment Industry Charity Golf Classic which took place at Lionhead Golf & Conference Centre in Brampton, Ontario on June 28.

Unison Jam 2, which was conceived by classic 1990s Can-rockers I Mother Earth, featured that band performing with original singer Edwin as well as appearances by The Trews, Raine Maida of Our Lady Peace, Tim Hicks, James Black of Finger Eleven, Tom Wilson, Tomi Swick, Ascot Royals, John Cody and Chantal Kreviazuk. The show ended up raising $24,317 for Unison.

The golf tournament, which was supported by title sponsor Bell Media as well as key supporters Slaight Music and HMV, raised a record-setting $51,086.

Canadian music industry support across the two events was incredibly strong. The list of high-profile companies that supported Unison included: 93.5 The Move, Boom 97.3, Bell Media, Casino Rama Resort, Entertainment One, Erikson Audio, Event Caddy, Jackson-Triggs Estate Wines, Labatt Brewing Company, HMV, I Mother Earth, Mellor Croy Inc, Metalworks Studios, Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment Ltd, Nielsen, The Phoenix Concert Theatre, Silent Auctions Canada, Slaight Music, SOCAN, Sony Music Canada, St Louis Bar and Grill, Taylor Klein Oballa LLP, TD Place, Ted's World Famous BBQ, The Feldman Agency, Ticketmaster, Universal Music Canada, Warner Music Canada, WayHome Music Festival, Wonderful Union and Yamaha Canada.

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