Wheels for Africa fundraiser with Musicroom Portsmouth

The Milton Arms in Southsea, Portsmouth looks set to get Christmas Rocking this year, with ‘The Wheels for Africa Appeal’ Special Fund Raiser ‘Rock-4-Africa’, on December 19th 2010. It’s hoped that these good vibrations will be felt thousands of miles away on the African continent!
Rock For Africa is being staged on Sunday December 19 from 7.00 p.m. as a festive fundraiser to help improve the lives of disabled people in The Gambia, Ghana & Nigeria.
To help the cause further, Musicroom Portsmouth is donating three Yamaha PSR-E323 keyboards to the charity. As charity Chairman, Adrian Mills, explains: “Electrical musical instruments are prohibitively expensive in Africa, but enabling disabled people to play musical instruments, makes life more enjoyable. Plus, through public performance, recipients can help to raise awareness of the charity and its cause at a local level. ”
The benefit gig is being organised by local boy and former Royal Marine, Adrian Mills, who himself is a T7 paraplegic and a wheelchair user following a Parachute accident sustained while working as an instructor in America in 1989.
He is the driving force behind the charity, The Wheels for Africa Appeal, which has the dream of bringing health & mobility to thousands of people in Africa, by recycling unwanted wheelchairs and medical equipment from the UK.
“A suitable wheelchair opens up new possibilities and opportunities for an independent life and allows individuals to no longer be considered outcasts from society, but as valued members of their community” he said.
The Rock For Africa line up for this the second annual event is made up of 5 local bands, Headlining with the Mulatones a new festival band that has recently set out to take over the festival circuit. With a saxophone lead Jazz funk sound they always have the crown jumping. Other bands are mainly from the Portsmouth and Chichester area. Also scheduled to appear are: Sounditions a local dub band; Hakuna Pesa who performed at the Glastonbury Festival this summer and who have recently toured Eastern Europe to a  rapturous reception – they are also releasing their long awaited album this Christmas! Joining them in the line-up is up-and-coming local band “Platform 13”, one of this year’s finalists of Live and Unsigned, the national music competition for unsigned bands in the UK. ‘The Space Baby Collective’ will finish the night with an all star jam, playing some of their famous bass line tunes.
Tickets for Rock For Africa cost £5 and can be booked through the Milton Arms or by phoning Adrian on 01243 672473 See the Wheels4 Africa website for more information about how you can help the cause.