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Gone Country: Gord Bamford, Washboard Union play Surrey benefit concert this summer

Annual party in Cloverdale raises funds for cancer-related causes
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Musician Gord Bamford will headline this summer’s Gone Country benefit concert in Cloverdale. (Photo: Twitter.com/GordBamford)

SURREY — Gord Bamford and The Washboard Union will headline this summer’s Gone Country benefit concert.

The annual “Here for the Cure” party, set for Saturday, July 21 at Bill Reid Millennium Park in Cloverdale, will this year aim to raise a whopping $580,000 for the Canuck Place Children’s Hospice located in Abbotsford.

The rain-or-shin shindig is “a big outdoor country music concert with all proceeds going to fight cancer,” as described on the website twinscancerfundraising.com.

Other entertainers at the sixth annual concert in 2018 will include Karen Lee Batten, Rollin’ Trainwreck, The Tumblin’ Dice, Andrew Christopher, Jesse Allen Harris and JR-FM DJ Jaxon Hawks.

Last year’s event raised close to $520,000, with Tim Hicks as headliner.

• READ MORE: Record crowd at Gone Country raises half million to battle cancer, from July 2017.

This year, tickets for the 19-plus event range from $42.99 to $429.99, with “early bird” tickets now on sale via eventbrite.ca.

The day-long concert will start at 2 p.m. and end at around 11 that evening.

Gone Country was founded by identical twins Chris and Jamie Ruscheinski, who work as realtors in the Langley area.

“We chose this cause in memory of our mother, who lost her battle with breast cancer eighteen years ago,” they say in a post on the event website. “Since then, we have lost our step-sister, our grandfather, as well as our great friend Shaun G. This has only added gasoline to our fire. We are not going to stand idly by while it continues to attack the ones we love. Your generosity and continued support is greatly appreciated.”

Bamford is an Australian-Canadian singer who has had nine of his songs on the Canadian Hot 100 chart over the past decade. His hit songs include “When Your Lips are So Close,” “Breakfast Beer” and “Leaning On A Lonesome Song.”



tom.zillich@surreynowleader.com

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Tom Zillich

About the Author: Tom Zillich

I cover entertainment, sports and news stories for the Surrey Now-Leader, where I've worked for more than half of my 30-plus years in the newspaper business.
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