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Male voice choir perform for Spinal Injury patients at Sheffield hospital

Thirty five members of the Steeton Male Voice choir volunteered their time to perform live in the Spinal Cord Injury Centre to help lift the spirits of one of their choir members, Gordon Sugden who has been treated there since July.

82 year old Gordon from Ilkley was involved in a car accident in London over the Christmas holiday, which left him paralysed. Gordon was transferred to Sheffield, which specialises in treating spinal cord injuries and is the second largest in the country.

The choir arrived by a coach they had hired and sang a range of songs including one of Gordon’s favourite pieces, aptly entitled, ‘Comrades in Arms’.

A large number of other patients who had been invited to attend also came along to enjoy listening to the moving performance that helped to provide a welcome distraction from daily routines. As on average patients with a spinal cord injury spend at least three months on the Unit to aid recovery and to prepare them for their return home.

The wonderful sound of one of the oldest and most respected male voice choirs in Yorkshire, filled the dining room with music for over forty minutes and kept the audience of pateints and staff captivated.

When asked what had prompted the performance, Eric Parker, the choir’s Publicity Officer said: ‘We are all close friends in the choir and can only imagine the anguish that Gordon has experienced. We wanted to show our support and to bring a smile to his face during such a difficult time in his life. We hope our performance has helped in some small way and that the £1200 we have also raised for Sheffield Hospitals Charity will support other patients being cared for in the Spinal Cord Injury Centre.

Sheffield Hospitals Charity uses its funds to help make life easier for patients on the Unit. It has funded various items, such as specialist wheelchairs to increase comfort and televisions that enable patients who are required to lay stationary to watch them over their heads.

Notes to editors

For further information contact Sarah Stables on 0114 2711355 or 07966874895 or email sarah.stables@shct.nhs.uk

• The Steeton Male Voice Choir perform about 25 times a year in venues ranging from tiny chapels and churches to cathedrals, concert halls and arenas. The choir has contributed to massed male voice choir events in the Royal Albert Hall, The National Stadium of Wales in Cardiff and The Manchester Evening News Arena, the Sheffield Arena and St George's Hall, Bradford.

• The Charity is currently aiming to raise £100,000 to pay for a revolutionary robotic suit that enables wheelchair users to stand up and walk.Anyone that wishes to support the Spinal Unit, can donate online at sheffieldhospitalscharity.org.uk, by calling 0114 2711351.

• Sheffield Hospitals Charity is an official NHS charity. It invests around £2million a year in vital equipment, pioneering research, patient and family support, buildings and people to help improve the care and treatment of patients being treated in the five hospitals that are part of Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.