PORTLAND – When Kate Schrock was asked to contribute a song to a fundraising album for the Maine Breast Cancer Coalition, she didn’t have to think twice.
“I said ‘absolutely’ when they asked. I was just hoping I had an uplifting song to offer,” said the Portland singer-songwriter. “I had an aunt with breast cancer. But it got me thinking about anyone who has an illness, who needs some extra support.”
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Schrock is one of 27 female singer-songwriters or groups from Maine who appear on “The Pink Album,” a benefit CD for the Maine Breast Cancer Coalition’s Support Service Fund.
The CD, which sells for $24.99, will be unveiled Sunday at a concert at One Longfellow Square in Portland. At least eight of the women who performed on the album are scheduled to be part of the concert, though the exact on-stage lineup has not yet been determined. The CD also will be for sale at Bull Moose Music and Mr. Paperback.
The idea for the album came from graphic designer Mark Medford and was funded by his main client, PATCO, a Sanford construction company. Medford and PATCO have been working with the Maine Breast Cancer Coalition for several years, coming up with a different fundraising project each year, said Christine Haiss, the coalition’s vice president.
Medford got the idea for the album after doing design work for another album that was aimed at raising money to end hunger in Maine. That CD was put together by local music producer and songwriter Con Fullam, so Medford asked Fullam to produce “The Pink Album.”
Fullam then began contacting female musicians, asking them to contribute recorded tracks.
“I felt it was not only natural but necessary to give whatever I could to those who need or would appreciate healing through music,” said Laura Darrell, a Yarmouth singer-songwriter currently working in Los Angeles and New York. “Plus I get the chance to be part of something important, with many great artists.”
Besides Schrock and Darrell, the album’s contributors represent a wide range of styles and experience in the music world. For example, there are national music industry veterans such as Cindy Bullens and Joan Kennedy. Bullens’ fame began when she sang on the soundtrack to the movie “Grease” in the 1970s, and Kennedy has been a star on the Canadian country scene, having been nominated for seven Canadian Country Music Awards.
There are up-and-coming Maine-based performers, including Marie Morsehead and Lady Lamb the Beekeeper, and women’s ensembles, such as Women in Harmony, Pihcintu and Inanna.
Others on the album include Kirsten Thien, Andrea Re, Anni Clark, Anne Dodson, Sara Cox, Kenya Hall, Maura Clarke, Kat Logan, Jude Johnstone, Alana MacDonald, Lissa Schneckenburger, Emilia Dahlin, Jaye Drew, Rosie Upton, Lynn Deeves, Ellen Tipper, Sontiago and Malinda Liberty.
The Maine Breast Cancer Coalition is a volunteer, nonprofit group that provides help to people all over Maine, including help with financial needs related to their illness, said Haiss.
“The ‘Pink Album’ is such a bold and unique idea, and it’s an example of the wonderfully creative ways to raise funds PATCO has come up with every year,” said Haiss.
Staff Writer Ray Routhier can be contacted at 791-6454 or at:
rrouthier@pressherald.com
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