Sisters of Soul 2: Ladies of the '80s, Sunday, April 13 at 7:30 p.m. at Kay Meek Centre, a benefit concert with silent and live auctions in support of the Avalon Recovery Society. Tickets: $35. kaymeekcentre.com
Catherine Bowers has firsthand experience with addiction.
As a teenager, she struggled with body image. "But it was after a traumatic incident in university that I developed full blown anorexia and bulimia and compulsive overeating," says Bowers. She had to give up on her education and lost her passion for singing and songwriting. "It wasn't until 25 years later, after yo-yoing between 115 and 300 pounds that I was able to find my solution: A combination of music and recovery work," she says.
At age 47, Bowers started taking vocal lessons, began writing again, and went on to seek treatment for her addiction, including attending 12-step meetings at West Vancouver's Avalon Recovery Society dropin centre. The society is dedicated to helping women in recovery from addiction and operates three drop-in centres - on the North Shore, Vancouver and in White Rock. Each centre offers a host of services, including peer-led 12 step meetings, child minding, resource and referral information, clothing exchanges, and a health and education program focused on helping women improve their coping skills, selfesteem and resilience. Last year the society recorded more than 35,000 visits from women in recovery.
"I had absolutely no idea that the help I needed had been less than two miles from my home all along," says Bowers. Crediting the help of Avalon and music, at age 50, Bowers released her first two albums.
She's continued to give back to Avalon, and, since 2010, has been organizing fundraising concerts in support of the society, for example, an Amy Winehouse tribute evening, as well as last year's inaugural Sisters of Soul, featuring music from the '60s and '70s.
"I've been in recovery for six years. Producing concerts and gathering my musical family together to raise funds and awareness is part of my grateful obligation to give back," she says, now 54.
Bowers' next benefit concert, Sisters of Soul 2: Ladies of the '80s, is set for Sunday, April 13 at Kay Meek Centre. She's serving as both producer and a performer in the show.
The concert will feature professional and top student vocalists, accompanied by Michael Creber and his band, performing songs by Aretha Franklin, Chaka Khan, Blondie, Bonnie Tyler, Cyndi Lauper and Tina Turner. Performers include Double Helix, Jessi Nicholson, Bonnie Kilroe, Janice Beaudoin, Jennifer Morabito, Michelle Creber, Rebel Valentine, and Bowers' daughter, Emily, 16, a student at Collingwood, will take the stage with Top Line Vocal Collective.
Many of the featured artists have been touched by addiction, either within their social and family circles, or else personally, like in the case of Dalannah Gail Bowen. "Ten years ago I was homeless and living in addiction so I identify certainly with the experience and the difficulty of when you make the choice to work at changing your life, what that means. It's very, very difficult. So having support systems like the Avalon Recovery Society is really important," says the 68-yearold Vancouver performer. Bowen was also a featured performer in last year's Sisters of Soul concert.
In addition to raising funds in support of the society, Bowers' benefit concerts have helped inspire women struggling with addiction to seek support from Avalon and other residential treatment programs. "They saw other women being brave and saying, 'I struggle.' That's been miraculous," says Bowers. "There's absolutely no shame in asking for help. Addiction is a disease and I think it's really important to bring it out of the closet," she adds.
Community members are encouraged to make it possible for women in recovery who are in financial need to attend the show. "Every year, we ask for pay-it-forward donors who donate $35 to purchase a ticket on behalf of a woman in recovery who cannot afford to attend the event. The donor receives a tax receipt, and a woman in need benefits from the inspirational music," says Bowers.
avalonrecoverysociety.org
