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Megan Young believes in the magic of Christmas after attending the Paddington Station benefit concert tonight in Langley.
She was one of fourth-floor residents who lost almost everything she owned in the Dec. 11 fire at the Langley City condominium complex.
Her Santa arrived Tuesday in the form of David and Elizabeth Pett. This Langley couple recently renovated their home and arrived at the benefit concert this evening with the offer to fully furnish and outfit a home for one of the fire victims.
That lucky recipient ended up being Young, who will be given a chance to pick through everything from furniture and linens to household accessories and bedding to set up a new home.
She was overwhelmed by how so many people have opened their hearts to herself and other residents of Paddington, and she was particularly grateful to this pair of generous donor who stepped forward on Tuesday.
This was just one of many examples of kindness and generosity that event organizer Karen Lee Batten witnessed throughout the day-long benefit concert.
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CAPTION: A team of Langley musicians and Santa helped breath magic into the Christmas season for Paddington Station residents who lost their homes to fire recently. These folks, as well as other volunteers and donors, helped make the benefit concert a success. They also helped Paddington residents such as Megan Young (right) and her daughter.
“It’s overwhelming the amount of money that came in, the amount of people who came through, and the amount of love that was obvious in this room today,” said Batten, who admits to also being a believer after all she saw and heard.
In just a matter of days, Batten brought together a few dozen local musicians and more than a hundred behind the scenes volunteers to host an eight-hour benefit concert at Langley Events Centre on Tuesday.
“It’s just crazy,” she said of all the people who pulled together, donated all their energy, products, and services to make this fundraiser a reality.
“It was just a huge hearted team of people that made it all possible,” said Batten, noting that no one said “no” when she or other members of the organizing team approached asking for help.
While donations were still being tallied, as crews tore down after the concert Tuesday evening, Batten was beaming that they’d already topped more than $45,000 and donations from half of the silent auction items were still to be counted.
“From the bottom of my heart, I want to send a thank you to everyone,” she said.
This massive community event, Batten said, proves that “Langley really does care. I love this community.”
• See related story about Emily Taylor Adams – a participant at the benefit concert and a Paddington Station resident
