News / Gemma fundraising for Everest charity trek with Posers throwback
A DETERMINED islander is stepping up her fundraising efforts for mental health and armed forces charities ahead of a planned trek to the base camp of Mount Everest early next year.
Gemma Graham has organised a DJ night at Posers this Friday (1 December) from 10pm and has roped in the services of her dad, Stuart Graham, who used to be the Lerwick nightclub’s resident DJ in the late 1980s and early 1990s. He’ll be joined by budding DJ James Aitken who will be playing a mixture of recent and past hits.
Twenty seven year old Gemma, who lives in Whiteness, is raising money for NHS Shetland’s mental health team and the armed forces charity Help For Heroes.
She has been doing “lots of hill walking and hitting the gym” in preparation for the two-week trek to Mount Everest’s south base camp, which is some 5,364 metres above sea level.
Gemma said the mental health team was “under so much pressure with the increasing demand for the service” and she has specified that she wants the money to be used “to support them in training to allow them to provide a much-needed in-demand service to Shetland”.
“I chose to support Help For Heroes because I have quite a few friends who have been in the army and witnessed the most horrible things,” she continued. “I wanted to support another cause that supports mental rehabilitation as well as physical and what better way than to support those whose lives have been impacted in fighting for our country?”
She is urging people to come out on Friday to support both causes and enjoy a fun night out – promising this will be “the one and only time that Stuart picks up and dusts off those headphones”.
His sets have previously been broadcast live on BBC Radio 1 and he has DJ’d alongside musician and producer Sister Bliss, best known as a founding member of Faithless.
“My dad who was the Posers resident DJ in the late 80s/early 90s will be coming back for one night only to throw us back to that era,” Gemma said. “I’m hoping that this will pull folk in that used to go out back in the day!”
- You can buy wristbands for Friday night’s charity takeover from Da Steakhouse or Fjara, priced £7.
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