Some of you may have noticed the unhappy news Richard dropped in the OM6 thread a couple of weeks ago.He was made redundant in an unpleasant way with no notice, left high and dry by colleagues and friends at work.
Anyone who migrated from the old Forum needs no introduction to Richard and what he does.
For those who have joined the Community since the relaunch and find it a warm, friendly, helpful, encouraging, safe, interesting, and educational space- well, much of that is directly due to Richard.
He is a pivotal part of the team and manages to convey Justin’s ethos of spreading the joy of learning guitar perfectly. The philosophy is be helpful, lead by example, ‘pay it forward’, don’t ask for anything in return- but good deeds generate good deeds. He often goes above and beyond his duties of moderator with explanations of musical theory, technique, advice on gear, the sourcing of instruments for us clueless newbies and so much more.
He has become a real friend in a virtual world to many.
Whilst online commiserations and well-wishes are appreciated, some of us felt that this was an ideal opportunity to express our genuine gratitude in a more tangible, meaningful way.
We decided to get together and throw him the leaving-work-do that he did not receive, complete with a whip-around to buy himself the proverbial gold watch or at least help tide him over till his next employment, whatever that may be.
This is where you come in.
We are putting on a once-off. special open mic event for Richard on
Sat 2nd April @ 7pm UK time (BST)
Same format; same platform (Zoom)-
The only difference being all participants (performers and audience) are asked to contribute £10 (or more, should they wish).
All proceeds go to Richard, to do with as he pleases.
Even if you are unavailable or simply have no interest in attending the open mic event, you can still show support by ‘buying the link’.
For ‘seasoned’ members it’s a chance to demonstrate our appreciation.
For ‘newer’ members it’s an opportunity to engage closer with a group they have chosen to hang out with.
For anyone else, it’s just another fun open mic night where a bunch of guitar enthusiasts share their love of what they do (and are willing to make fools of themselves in the process).
Registration:
Please message @brianlarsen and let me know whether you would like to perform/be in the audience or simply donate. I will send you my Bank-, PayPal- or Revolut details.
(Please be patient if I do not respond immediately; I will get back)
To avoid any peer pressure, I will only add a ‘+’ after the name of anyone who donates more than a tenner. (I will pass details to Richard privately, unless you prefer to remain anonymous)
This is not a charity fundraiser.
It’s a celebration of our fab moderator and all-round good egg, Richard.
It should be fun.
Thank you for your support
The ‘unofficial’ OM organisers
Edit 4:
Thanks all for your massive support 
We have a healthy kitty and an impressive list of sponsors and performers.
The overwhelming majority of donors have asked to remain anonymous, so I have decided not to differentiate between who contributed how much.
I’ve updated the sponsors/performers list below.
Could you please check and let me know if I’ve omitted anyone?
There’s still plenty of time if anyone else would like to perform something on the night.
Don’t be shy 
I’ll message performers separately, but just to remind everyone it starts this Sat at 19.00 UK/BST (UTC+1).
Suggested order of performance with time zones:
DavidP UTC+2
Richard UTC+1
KevinKevan UTC+2
tRONd UTC+2
Greyal UTC+1
Adi_mrok UTC+1
Iainism UTC+1
Rossco01 UTC+1
Pikeamus UTC+1
Laity UTC+1
Brianlarsen UTC+1
Tobyjenner UTC+2
Mari63 UTC- 4
Rod58 UTC -4
CT UTC -7
LievenDV UTC+2
