Artists for Mary's Meals

Pushing the boat out for Mary’s Meals – artists and musicians Margaret Houston from Jordanhill, Glasgow; Elspeth Glasgow from Woodside, Glasgow; Josephine Torrance from Duntocher, West Dunbartonshire; Phil Allen, boatman at Gourock Yacht Club; Lizzie Mackinlay from Kilbarchan, Renfrewshire, and Netta Ewing from Dumbreck in Glasgow. Picture and story by Bill Heaney.

Avast there you landlubbers … an unlikely group of pirates are after your treasure.

Artists and Musicians for Mary’s Meals pushed the boat out and had a pirate theme at a working lunch this week in Gourock Yacht Club on the Firth of Clyde.

They swapped dreadful stories about hanging and walking the plank and the Dry Tortugas, and wild deeds and places on the Spanish Main.

Before breaking out the rum bottle – well, white wine really – and celebrating the fact they collected almost £10,000 from a festival week of art sales and concerts in Glasgow’s House for an Art Lover and the City Chambers in October.

The money was used to build a feeding station and school for children in Malawi, the second of its kind to be built with cash from the group.

Co-ordinator Netta Ewing from Dumbreck in Glasgow said: “We agreed to do something similar this year – and we’ll definitely be back in House for an Art Lover on October 31 with a couple of concerts.

“The money raised last October is being spent by Mary’s Meals on building and equipping a feeding shelter for Njera School, which is located in the Mangochi district of Malawi and has 460 pupils. It will be used to pay for the cost of a shelter where the children are fed each day.”

The talented group decided to give it an Admiral Benbow yo-ho-ho and dress up in brocades, velvets and 18th century wraprascals to coincide with the national launch of the new blockbuster movie, The Pirates.

They even recruited Phil Allen, the bearded boatman at Gourock Yacht Club, to ferry them to their very own imaginary Treasure Island on the Firth of Clyde.

Robert Louis Stevenson would have been proud of these pirates.

Netta said: “It’s remarkable what a few tots of rum can do for the imagination.

“We’re hoping that most of the money we raise for Mary’s Meals this year will come in £ notes, but a sea chest full of louis-d’ors, guineas, doubloons and pieces of eight will be just terrific.”

Presentation of the Cheque

Artists for Mary’s Meals handed over a very special Christmas present to Mary’s Meals today, writes Bill Heaney – a cheque for £9,000!

The money, which was raised during our highly successful Festival of the Arts in Glasgow last month, will be spent by Mary’s Meals on building and equipping a feeding shelter for Njera School, which is located in the Mangochi district in the southern part of Malawi. It has 460 children enrolled, out of which there are 232 boys and 228 girls. Their source of water is a borehole which means there is access to water all year round for cooking the Likuni Phala porridge!

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Robert Burns by Peter Howson

A bid of more than the £4,900 reserve price could secure this portrait of Robert Burns by Peter Howson, which is up for silent auction to benefit Mary’s Meals.

Measuring 70×80 centimetres, the pastel work is open to private bids which can be placed at the House for an Art Lover shop until Tuesday November 8. Half of the proceeds will go to Mary’s Meals.

A spokeswoman for Mr Howson said: “This work was completed in response to Peter’s sell-out exhibition at the Robert Burns Museum.

“Peter feels a great affinity with Burns as they were both raised in Ayrshire. He was aiming to portray the many sides of Burns the man, as opposed to the stereotyped character.

“In this particular work Burns has been represented as a stoical, thoughtful character, his many other sides hidden.”

Pictures of some of those who attended our Art and Craft Fair in Glasgow’s City Chambers:

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More than 580,000 children are being fed and educated in 16 countries across the world thanks to Mary’s Meals, one of Scotland’s favourite charities, it was revealed in Glasgow last night, writes Bill Heaney.

And a further 1,500 starving children could be added to that number if art lovers – and music fans – dig deep into their pockets and attend concerts and buy paintings, which are being exhibited at House for an Artlover in Bellahouston Park over the next week.

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