About the Fund
I lost my lovely wife Irene to breast cancer in 2011 after a gruelling three year battle she waged with courage, determination and, incredibly, lots of laughter. Irene was not only the ‘love of my life’, she was the bravest person I’ve ever met and was just 48 years old when she passed away.
We had no children and just lived happily in each other’s pockets. So when breast cancer finally stole Irene’s future, it took mine too. I was totally devastated when she died. I just adored her. During her treatment, Irene had nothing but praise for doctors, nurses and staff at Glasgow’s Beatson Cancer Centre amid their daily struggle to arrest the ravages of this terrible disease among a seeming Tsunami of patients. It’s one of the busiest cancer hospitals in the UK. I want to do something to help. As the wife of a semi-professional vocalist, Irene had always urged me to make a recording but I never got around to it. Well finally I have. I’ve enlisted the help of some award winning British jazzmen to back me in singing and swinging the ‘American Songbook’ standards my wife and I loved. “Always In My Heart” is a musical memoir dedicated to my late wife. It’s an album of songs about love; the wistful yearning for it, the unbridled joy of finding it, the day-to-day year-by-year quiet satisfaction of it, and the agony of losing it. All proceeds and royalties from this CD are going to the Beatson Cancer Charity earmarked for patient care to help provide comfort and support to patients and their families attending the cancer centre. I’ve pressed a thousand copies to give away free at jazz gigs such as the one I do every Saturday evening in the Alona Hotel, Strathclyde Park as one of the ‘Ben Marcato Four’. I want people to take the CD away, play it, and if they like it, make a donation and leave a message. Hopefully, that’s why you are here. You can also get my CD, Always in My Heart from Beatson Cancer Charity by calling them on 0141 212 0505 and asking for Supporter Care. It can also be sampled and purchased for download from iTunes or Amazon.It is available on Spotify and other platforms. All proceeds and royalties will go to the Beatson Cancer Charity. My memorial is not quite the Taj Mahal but it’s the best I can do. Hopefully you and I together can assist patients battling this awful disease. And maybe something bountiful will spring from Irene’s untimely passing. Thank you for your support. It means a lot. More about Irene can be found by viewing the video via the Memories tab. The CD booklet of liner notes, photos, song titles, and musicians’ biographies can also be downloaded in PDF format via the Memories tab.
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