Pete Shelley Memorial Campaign
This article is taken from STAT - ISSUE 01 (September 2020)
Who are we ?
A community not for profit fund raising collective that formed following the passing of Leigh born music legend Peter Campbell McNeish (better known as Pete Shelley) with the intention to raise funds for a permanent memorial of Pete in his hometown of Leigh and also to raise funds for music and arts in the borough which will be specifically aimed at members of the community that would normally struggle to pay for instruments and equipment that would allow them to follow their dreams.
Why ?
Because we believe that Pete's legacy needs to live on as he is an exemplary example of your typical working class lad, done good. From his humble beginnings born to working class parents in Milton Street, he showed us what can be achieved from nothing.
Pete clearly is an inspiration to any budding musicians and artists in our borough.
What have we done so far ?
We have at present raised over £11,000 mainly from hosting live music events in Leigh, Wigan and Atherton. The last 3 events which were held in Leigh completely sold out long before the events began. The last event took place at St Josephs Hall and got many great reviews throughout the UK it brought together 6 original bands from the era Pete found his successes, The Drones, Fast Cars, The Distractions, Notsensibles and Benefit State together again on one stage, and for the first time ever in Leigh.
The gig was attended by people all over the UK from places like Brighton, Bristol, Edinburgh, and Leeds to name just a few.
We have also been involved in the incredibly successful Understated exhibition curated by Malcolm Garret who was responsible for buzzcocks artwork and ran for 6 weeks at The Turnpike in Leigh back in November/December 2019.
Also through partnership working with Wigan council we also have a blue heritage plaque that will be fitted to Pete's previous home in the town.
What Next ?
Well things were all going extremely well until the global pandemic hit and we had to put most things on hold. But during the lockdown we have applied for official charity status hopefully to be known as The Pete Shelley Foundation, it is hoped this will allow us to continue fund raising long after the memorial is in place which will be of benefit to the youth in the borough helping them to follow their dreams in music and arts, something we know that Pete would have been proud to be involved with, it's exactly how Pete was, always wanting to help and support others.
We also held an online live music streaming event and an auction to raise funds, and we continue with partnership collaborations to achieve our goals, via Skype meetings etc.
The Pete Shelley Memorial Campaign is very much work in progress and is open to everyone who wishes to become involved.
The Pete Shelley Memorial Campaign can be found on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and the World Wide Web. We have over 1500 hundred followers throughout the world on those social media platforms. You can also email us at peteshelley.msc@gmail.com for more information.
Life's an illusion Love is a dream .
words
Paul Lally (on behalf of PSMC)
images
Steve White with permission of PSMC
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