On 10th November 2017, members of the BPSO playd in the special BPSO PlayOut! charity fundraising recital on the evening of Friday 10th November in Areley Kings Village Hall, Stourport on Severn, Worcestershire.
The recital launched the Derek Fradgley Memorial Fund. Derek was a very influential member of the business community, both locally in the Stourport and Kidderminster area and more widely throughout Worcestershire, for many years. He enjoyed a long term involvement with Worcestershire and had been due to take on the position of Chair of the Ambassadors in May 2017.
Derek was a great lover of classical music and was central to much of the social life of Areley Kings, regularly organising community group visits to a wide range of cultural events in Worcestershire. In the last year he had been a great supporter of the British Police Symphony Orchestra, including having organised and chartered a coach trip from Stourport to attend the Orchestra’s concert commemorating the Battle of the Somme in Worcester Cathedral in June. Tragically, he was unable to attend the concert himself due to the sudden onset of his illness. In addition, earlier in 2017 he became a Governor at St Bartholomew’s C of E Primary School in Areley Kings, where his drive, energy and enthusiasm was already beginning to make an impact.
His premature and completely unexpected death from a particularly aggressive form of brain cancer, only five weeks after having been diagnosed, has left a large gap in the community and much of his work unfinished, which is why we are determined to ensure that his legacy lives on.
The aim of the charity is to increase the opportunities for children and young people in the Stourport on Severn area to learn about and be inspired by music of all types and genres, whether by learning how to sing and/or play or through being exposed to performances and workshops, etc. Initially, the charity will have a particular focus on the needs of children attending St Bartholomew’s C of E Primary School and Nursery, Areley Kings.