Young people who are supported by Helensburgh Heroes were inspired by a meeting with Nile Rodgers at the weekend
A music superstar hosted a very special day for a group of young people.
Youngsters who are supported by Helensburgh Heroes had a once in a lifetime experience of meeting and chatting with pop legend Nile Rodgers at his new Fiesta X Fold musical festival in Glasgow’s Kelvingrove Park at the weekend.
The private back stage meeting was arranged following a request made by the charity’s trustee Stuart Duncan.
Helensburgh Heroes was founded in the belief that everyone is special, has the power to do great things but that sometimes you need a catalyst to set you on your way, and opened its Heroes Centre in Helensburgh earlier this year.
Duncan explained: “We are currently developing a wide-ranging events programme at the centre that caters for the whole community including our Tales from the Big Chair programme. This involves a guest speaker discussing their life and experiences in an Actors Studio format and closes with a short Q&A session. Our guest speakers will be drawn from a wide range of backgrounds and industries but all of them are inspiring.
“I approached Nile through his management team and he was keen to participate in a session. We were all hoping that he might be able to visit the centre and we waited until the final minute but his schedule presented impossible logistical challenges. He then invited us to be his personal guests for the day to host the Big Chair session backstage at the festival and we faced the challenge of arranging it within 48 hours but I’m delighted to say that we made it.”
Following a late appeal, several young people applied to join the charity for the event, including talented aspiring local Helensburgh musicians Louis Page and Emma Murdoch.
Whilst the crowds out front were enjoying the music of Goldfrapp, the Helensburgh group were sat backstage chatting with the Chic star about his philosophy, his ideas and his personal journey. Despite his busy schedule, curating the festival and later headlining with Chic, Rodgers spent nearly an hour with the group answering questions.
The group were then invited to stay for the performances of Emeli Sande and Chic before departing home.
