As son battles cancer, London musician's guitar raffle raises thousands for charity

Matthew Trevithick · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 18, 2025 5:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 1 infinitesimal ago

After 3 decades, a London instrumentalist is stepping backmost from touring to beryllium with his 12-year-old son, who is battling encephalon cancer.

Trevor Lewington plays guitar and sings successful the Celtic stone radical Enter the Haggis, which performed their last shows successful mid-March successful Troy, N.Y.

The band's dependable features bagpipes, a violin and trumpet, and it' been featured successful films and connected television, including a PBS special.

During the band's 18-show last circuit successful the U.S., Lewington says helium decided to raffle disconnected his first-ever guitar, a 1991 American Telecaster purchased astatine a Toronto pawn store successful the 90s, to rise wealth to combat paediatric encephalon cancer. 

After selling astir $50,000 worthy of raffle tickets to fans during the tour, the set held a gully connected Mar. 25, and connected Thursday, Lewington presented cheques of the proceeds to 2 London-based charities.

More than $35,000 was donated to the Brain Tumour Foundation of Canada, and much than $11,000 to Childcan.

"It's beyond the fiscal support. It's conscionable knowing ... there's a assemblage of radical that are there," helium said. Childcan has been peculiarly adjuvant for the household implicit the past year, helium added.

"They're ever reaching retired to spot however we're doing and trying to spot immoderate they tin offer."

Jennifer Schmittlein of Massachusetts won the raffle, and talented the guitar to her husband, Jeffrey.

The mates person go friends of the set implicit the years, and successful January, took portion successful Camp Haggis, an yearly wintertime getaway the set holds successful Vermont.

At the camp, Jennifer approached Lewington, asking if she could buy one of his guitars for Jeffrey's birthday. Out of sheer coincidence, the mates besides took location the raffle Telecaster.

"We bought 1 ticket, and retired of the thousands of radical that bought a batch of tickets, we got lucky," Jeffrey Schmittlein said. The 2 person followed the set for a agelong time, attending respective shows during the last tour, helium said.

After proceeding the quality astir Lewington's son, "I said ... we person to assistance enactment Trevor successful this project. This is amazing, and he's an astonishing guy."

Enter the Haggis is known for playing New Year's shows each twelvemonth astatine Iron Horse, a venue successful Northampton not acold from the couple's home. (Lewington proposed to his woman successful the venue's greenish country during 1 of the yearly shows.)

During a caller amusement successful Maine, the set was asked to sanction their favourite spot to play gigs. Jeffrey thought the reply would beryllium Iron Horse, but instead, "they talked astir truthful galore places and truthful galore people."

"It deed me, they cognize their fans' archetypal names and who they are and what their beingness is similar from truthful galore different places," helium said. Not lone is the set musically originative and talented, but "they're besides conscionable bully people," helium said.

Back location successful London, Lewington says the family's position connected beingness has changed since their son's crab diagnosis, and spending prime clip unneurotic is the main priority.

He says the raffle is simply a bully quality communicative successful the midst of the governmental turmoil engulfing the 2 countries.

"We've had the pleasance of knowing truthful galore fantastic radical successful the U.S. implicit the past 25 years of touring successful the U.S." helium said.

"In summation to raising immoderate wealth and immoderate consciousness for this needy cause, it's truly bully to beryllium capable to stock a bully quality story."