PENNY AND ROD HELP TURN ‘SORROW TO JOY’
SIR Rod Stewart and Penny Lancaster have told the Daily Express how a 9/11-inspired charity day has helped turn “sorrow to joy” by raising millions.
Sir Rod, 76, and Penny, 50 – who are ambassadors for the charity Caudwell Children – spoke to the Daily Express during yesterday’s annual BGC Charity Day.
When the Twin Towers fell, financial giant BGC and affiliate Cantor Fitzgerald tragically lost 658 staff and 61 Eurobroker employees.
Causes
Now every September 11, BGC donates 100 per cent of that day’s global revenue to the needy – totalling £130million in 16 years.
Yesterday the showbiz couple helped seal multi-million-pound trades, with proceeds going to dozens of good causes. Sir Rod even serenaded the City workers who helped by treating them to a rendition of You Wear It Well.
Mother-of-two Penny said: “One of the traders we spoke to was around 20 years ago, and remembers speaking to people in New York at the time. He was explaining how shocking and unbearable it was not knowing whether people you were trading with were going to be alive or dead at the end of the day. It really does send a shiver down your spine.”
Singer Sir Rod said: “Today is absolutely an opportunity to turn sorrow into joy.”
Celebrities Olivia Colman, Damian Lewis, Bryan Cranston, Cara Delevingne, Davina McCall and Lord Ian Botham were among the others taking part.
Billionaire Phones 4u founder John Caudwell created his charity Caudwell Children in 2000 and he personally pumps in around £2million each year.
Explaining why she and Sir Rod support the charity, model Penny added: “Everything raised goes directly to disabled children. It’s incredible the work they do.
“Over 60,000 young disabled children from the Caudwell Children charity helped out with the charity drive today, along with their families.”