SATURDAYS are usually the one day of the week to be reserved for family time and catching up at home.

But I couldn’t resist the request to help with the Harmonies For Heroes event at Richmond School at the weekend.

It was a privilege to compere a special night in aid of Help For Heroes, featuring the Military Wags Choir from Catterick, Muker Silver Band, Reeth Band and a host of other local performers.

I hereby formally apologise for suggesting that Wags stands for “Women Always Going Shopping” and confirm that they are “Wives, Affiliates, Girlfriends and Servicewomen”.

Having cleared that up, my thanks to everyone who performed so brilliantly and to the audience who raised lots of money (it’s too soon to have the total) for a great charity.

It is just a few weeks since The Northern Echo launched its main appeal for 2014. The ambitious aim is to raise £100,000 for the Phoenix House rehabilitation centre for those returning with injuries from war zones such as Afghanistan.

The target was chosen to tie in with the 100th anniversary of the First World War and the money will go towards creating a performance area at Phoenix House which will be used as part of the range of therapies used to help veterans with physical and psychological injuries.

A Harmonies for Heroes CD has been produced.

It’s fantastic, it’s only £6, and it’s available fromthe website militarywagschoir.co.uk.

It’s Mother’s Day at the end of the month. Forget the chocolates and the flowers. My Mum will be much happier with a Harmonies For Heroes CD.

WE do our best to champion grassroots sport at The Northern Echo and, when I vacate the editor’s chair, I’ll look back on the Local Heroes Awards with proud memories.

The event was launched 15 years ago to encourage the North-East stars of grassroots and it has grown into something special.

At the 2006 awards, a fresh-faced Stockton teenager, brim-full of dreams, was one of our winners for his achievements as a promising junior on the athletics track.

My heart missed a beat when I saw that, eight years later, Richard Kilty has become a world champion. Talk about little acorns becoming great oaks.

Clocking a lifetime best time of 6.49 seconds, the “Teesside Tornado” claimed the 60 metres title at the World Indoor Athletics Championships in Poland.

Naturally, we celebrated his gold medal on our front page. And, naturally, he’ll get an invitation to be our guest of honour at the next Local Heroes Awards in December.

More stars of grassroots sport will be placed in the spotlight and, who knows, another future world champion might step up onto the stage.

A COUPLE of weeks ago, I was writing about The Northern Echo’s animal jinx.

Northern Echo the racehorse had proved to be as slow as Eric Pickles after a hearty breakfast, and Northern Echo the racing pigeon preferred sitting in a tree to winging its way home.

Imagine my relief, therefore, to see that Northern Echo the dog is a champion.

Not every dog has its daily but the exciting news came through by text on my day off that a very cute and fluffy bichon frise, bearing the name of this distinguished newspaper, had been named Special Puppy Bitch at Crufts.

Now the curse is broken, I might ask the boss if I can get another racehorse. What do you think?

The Northern Echo:
Richard Kilty receives his Local Heroes Award in 2006

K IRKBY-IN-CLEVELAND is a lovely village, especially when it’s bathed in sunshine, as it was when I visited last week to speak to the Stokesley Friendship Group.

Derek Whiting was appointed chairman at the brisk annual general meeting, which followed my talk, and he is keen to recruit new members. The group meets on the second Tuesday of the month at Kirkby Church Hall and Derek can be contacted on 01642-710700.

As the name suggests, they’re a friendly bunch and I’m grateful for the generous cheque they passed on for the Butterwick Children’s Hospice.

THE oddest story I came across last week was about a young fella called Mohammed Rashid becoming a world record-breaker by cracking 155 walnuts with his head in Pakistan.

Alan Pardew’s surely got to be in with a shout of beating it.

I STARTED this column with a tribute to heroes and I’ll finish it with a tribute to another hero – this one’s only ten years old.

On Thursday, we failed to give enough prominence to the fact that Marley Haggan, a little sea cadet from Hartlepool, had been honoured by the Royal British Legion for raising more than £3,000 for the Poppy Appeal.

Marley, who wants to be a Royal Marine one day, had given up his half-term holiday to collect for the appeal.

He already has plans to top that effort when this year’s extra-special Poppy Appeal gets underway.

At a time when so many youngsters get a bad press, Marley is an inspiring reminder that there are a lot more good kids than bad ones out there.

Marley’s my hero of the week.